THE INFLUENCE OF REPORTING ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT ON THE AUDITOR’S OPINION ON BUSINESS OPERATIONS OF AGRICULTURAL COMPANIES IN THE REPUBLIC OF SERBIA

Milena Stojic; Biljana Pejovic

doi:10.59267/ekoPolj25031007S

Authors

Milena Stojic Academy of hospitality, tourism and wellness, Tosin bunar 179dj, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia https://orcid.org/0009-0001-9436-7182
Biljana Pejovic Singidunum University, Danijelova 32, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8840-2498

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.59267/ekoPolj25031007S

Keywords:

sustainable development, audit opinion, Republic of Serbia, agricultural enterprises, environmental protection, financial reporting

Abstract

The auditor’s opinion on the operations of agricultural companies in the Republic of Serbia, conditional on reporting on sustainable development, is the topic of this paper. Although reporting on sustainable development is a legal obligation, its absence does not affect the audit opinion. The aim of this paper is to confirm the independence of the audit opinion on sustainable development reporting. The research was conducted on a sample of agricultural enterprises in a three-year period. The audit opinions of those companies and “Annual business reports”, were analyzed. The reports lack quantitative indicators of sustainability and they are primarily descriptive. The Fisher test confirmed the independence of the audit opinion and reporting on sustainable development. The research confirmed that the transparency of investment in sustainable development still does not significantly influence the audit opinion. A proposal was made on how reporting on sustainable development can be improved, within the institutional framework that will impose reporting obligations, and within the reporting of agricultural enterprises.

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