Voluntary environmental disclosure in authoritarian regimes: hidden resistance in a Tunisian context

Abstract

Purpose This study aims to investigate the motivations and functions of voluntary environmental disclosure (VED) in authoritarian contexts. It explores how disclosure can operate not only as a mechanism of legitimacy or compliance but also as a subtle form of resistance viewed through an infra-political lens. Design/methodology/approach The analysis draws on a longitudinal case study of a publicly listed Tunisian company operating under the Ben Ali regime. Seventeen years of annual reports are examined using critical discourse analysis, supported by interviews with managers, institutional actors and activists and complemented by relevant media documents. Findings In Tunisia, VED was unusual in two respects: it arose in a nascent financial market with no regulatory or institutional pressures, and it carried subtle critiques of state-owned enterprise dominance. The findings show that firms may mobilize environmental reporting not merely as a legitimacy device but also as a means to navigate – and discreetly contest – entrenched political and economic hierarchies, thereby enacting a constrained form of corporate agency. Originality/value By introducing an infra-political perspective to environmental disclosure, this research expands the understanding of VED beyond market-driven accounts. It demonstrates how disclosure in authoritarian regimes can embody a negotiated form of transparency shaped by power asymmetries, contributing to wider debates on corporate reporting, political economy and sustainability reporting.