{"id":5043,"date":"2025-01-14T17:41:01","date_gmt":"2025-01-14T15:41:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/esghub.ro\/?p=5043"},"modified":"2025-05-29T13:16:47","modified_gmt":"2025-05-29T10:16:47","slug":"vsme-voluntary-sustainability-reporting-standard-for-imm-uri","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/esghub.ro\/en\/vsme-standardul-voluntar-de-raportare-a-sustenabilitatii-pentru-imm-uri\/","title":{"rendered":"VSME - Voluntary Sustainability Reporting Standard for SMEs"},"content":{"rendered":"

The \"Voluntary Sustainability Reporting Standard for non-listed micro-, small-, and medium-sized undertakings\" (VSME) has been developed by EFRAG to assist non-listed small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in reporting sustainability information.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

This standard provides a framework simplified and standardised,<\/strong> designed to replace the many uncoordinated requests for ESG (environmental, social and governance) data that these companies face from business partners such as banks, investors and large corporates.<\/span><\/p>\n

In September 2023, the European Commission launched the SME support package, which included a request to EFRAG to develop a voluntary sustainability reporting standard for unlisted SMEs. The aim of this standard is to make it easier for SMEs to access green finance and to support them in their transition towards a sustainable economy.<\/span><\/p>\n

Objective of the standard<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

VSME aims to:<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  • simplify ESG reporting<\/strong> for SMEs, reducing the administrative burden associated with multiple information requests<\/span><\/li>\n
  • facilitate access to sustainable finance<\/strong>, providing investors and financial institutions with standardised and comparable information<\/span><\/li>\n
  • support the transition to a sustainable economy<\/strong>, encouraging SMEs to adopt environmentally and socially responsible practices.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Structure of the standard<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

    VSME is structured in two modules:<\/span><\/p>\n

      \n
    1. Basic Module:<\/strong> it provides a minimum set of reporting requirements, particularly suitable for micro-enterprises and other SMEs wishing to start sustainability reporting.<\/span><\/li>\n
    2. Comprehensive Module:<\/strong> It includes additional requirements for businesses that want to provide more detailed information, responding to the specific needs of business partners such as banks and investors.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      Presentation of modules <\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

      B1 - Training Centre:<\/strong> General information about the enterprise, such as legal form, NACE code, balance sheet size, turnover, number of employees and location of main operations.<\/span><\/p>\n

      B2 - Future practices, policies and initiatives for the transition to a sustainable economy:<\/strong> description of existing practices and policies and future plans related to sustainability.<\/span><\/p>\n

      B3 - Energy and greenhouse gas emissions:<\/strong> total energy consumption and GHG emissions (Scope 1 and Scope 2).<\/span><\/p>\n

      B4 - Air, water and soil pollution:<\/strong> information on polluting emissions and pollution prevention measures.<\/span><\/p>\n

      B5 - Biodiversity:<\/strong> the number and area of sites owned or managed in biodiversity sensitive areas.<\/span><\/p>\n

      B6 - Water:<\/strong> total water withdrawal and significant water consumption in production processes.<\/span><\/p>\n

      B7 - Resource utilisation, circular economy and waste management:<\/strong> information on raw material use, waste production and recycling practices.<\/span><\/p>\n

      B8 - Labour force - General characteristics:<\/strong> distribution of employees by contract type, gender and country.<\/span><\/p>\n

      B9 - Workforce - Health and safety:<\/strong> number and rate of occupational accidents and fatalities.<\/span><\/p>\n

      B10 - Labour force - Pay, collective bargaining and training:<\/strong> information on salaries, gender pay gaps, collective bargaining coverage and training hours.<\/span><\/p>\n

      B11 - Convictions and fines for corruption and bribery:<\/strong> the number of convictions and the total amount of fines for violating anti-corruption and anti-mitigation laws.<\/span><\/p>\n

      C1 - Strategy: business model and sustainability initiatives:<\/strong> description of the business model and strategic elements related to sustainability.<\/span><\/p>\n

      C2 - Describe future practices, policies and initiatives for the transition to a sustainable economy:<\/strong> further details on sustainability practices and policies, including the level of responsibility for their implementation.<\/span><\/p>\n

      C3 - GHG emission reduction targets and climate transition plans:<\/strong> information on emission reduction targets and transition plans.<\/span><\/p>\n

      C4 - Climate risks:<\/strong> assessing the risks related to climate change and its impact on business.<\/span><\/p>\n

      C5 - Additional labour force characteristics: <\/strong>detailed information on the structure of the labour force, including diversity, pay equity and social inclusion.<\/span><\/p>\n

      C6 - Value chain: <\/strong>details of how suppliers and business partners engage in sustainability practices, including working together to minimise emissions and negative environmental impacts.<\/span><\/p>\n

      C7 - Social impacts on communities: <\/strong>assessing the contribution of the enterprise to the well-being of local communities, such as social initiatives, job creation and support for education.<\/span><\/p>\n

      C8 - Governance information: <\/strong>corporate governance structure, including information on transparency, decision-making mechanisms and sustainability risk management.<\/span><\/p>\n

      C9 - Business integrity: <\/strong>details of measures taken to prevent and combat corruption, bribery and other unethical business practices. This module also requires reporting of cases investigated and sanctioned.<\/span><\/p>\n

      Why is the VSME standard important?<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n
        \n
      • adaptability and flexibility: <\/strong>the standard is structured in such a way that it is easy to use by SMEs, regardless of size or industry, with two levels: the basic and the comprehensive module<\/span><\/li>\n
      • impact on sustainability:<\/strong> promotes sustainable practices among SMEs, thus contributing to global sustainability goals<\/span><\/li>\n
      • reducing the administrative burden:<\/strong> by standardising reporting requirements, the standard simplifies the process for businesses and reduces administrative costs<\/span><\/li>\n
      • increased access to green finance: <\/strong>Standardised reporting increases transparency and trust in businesses, which can make it easier for them to access funding and strategic collaborations.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

        The original version of the VSME Standard can be found below.<\/span><\/h2>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

        Standardul \u201eVoluntary Sustainability Reporting Standard for non-listed micro-, small-, and medium-sized undertakings\u201d (VSME) a fost elaborat de EFRAG pentru a sprijini \u00eentreprinderile mici \u0219i mijlocii (IMM-uri) nelistate la burs\u0103 \u00een raportarea informa\u021biilor de sustenabilitate. Acest standard ofer\u0103 un cadru simplificat \u0219i standardizat, menit s\u0103 \u00eenlocuiasc\u0103 multiplele cereri necoordonate de date ESG (mediu, social \u0219i guvernan\u021b\u0103) […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":5045,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"iawp_total_views":12,"footnotes":""},"categories":[91],"tags":[125,124],"class_list":["post-5043","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-standarde","tag-standard-efrag","tag-vsme"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/esghub.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5043","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/esghub.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/esghub.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/esghub.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/esghub.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5043"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/esghub.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5043\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5058,"href":"https:\/\/esghub.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5043\/revisions\/5058"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/esghub.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5045"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/esghub.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5043"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/esghub.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5043"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/esghub.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5043"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}