Sustainability Reporting and Climate Accountability in the Public Sector: A Systematic Review
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.59890/ijgsr.v4i10.16Keywords:
Climate Accountability, Public Financial Governance, Public Sector, Sustainability Reporting, Systematic ReviewAbstract
Public-sector sustainability reporting is expanding, but whether disclosure strengthens climate accountability remains uncertain. Using PRISMA, this systematic review synthesizes 33 studies spanning 2019-2026 across accounting, public administration, environmental governance, and sustainability research. The evidence shows that reporting adoption is strongly shaped by institutional pressures, governance capacity, and stakeholder demands, while disclosure quality varies markedly across jurisdictions. Symbolic reporting remains common when materiality, assurance, budget integration, and audit mechanisms are weak. Climate accountability improves when reporting is connected to public financial governance through budgeting, accounting, internal control, and independent oversight. The review develops a reporting-to-accountability pathway and recommends stronger standardization, capacity building, assurance, and longitudinal evaluation of reporting outcomes
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