Communication
on Progress (CoP)
Reporting to stakeholders in a transparent and public manner is fundamental for companies committed to sustainability. Your company’s annual Communication on Progress (CoP) is a key component of your commitment to the UN Global Compact.
In case of questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to info@globalcompact.ch or cop-support@unglobalcompact.org. More general information on the CoP as well as further guidance and on-demand courses can be accessed below.
Communication on Progress
The Communication on Progress (CoP) is the accountability mechanism of the UN Global Compact. It is an annual and mandatory requirement for all business participants of the UN Global Compact. The submission period for the mandatory 2025 Communication on Progress (CoP) opens on 1 April 2025 and closes on 31 July 2025.
For additional information, please refer to the 2025 CoP Policy and resources at the bottom of this page. Supporting 2025 CoP materials will be made available on the CoP Academy webpage throughout Q1 2025.
Benefits of the Communication on Progress
Requirements
List Title
CoP online questionnaire / sustainability report
Reporting on corporate action and performance related to the Ten Principles of the UN Global Compact and the Sustainable Development Goals. For the 2025 reporting year, a sustainability report uploaded through the digital platform can still be submitted in lieu of the CoP Questionnaire. Please reference the 2025 CoP Policy for more information.
Deadlines
The 2025 CoP submission period is from 1 April 2025 at 15 CEST to 31 July 2025 at 23:00 CEST.
The CoP is an annual, mandatory requirement for all business participants of the UN Global Compact. New joiners do not need to submit a CoP until the year after joining. For example, participants joining the Global Compact in 2025 do not need to submit a CoP until 2026. Participants, excluding new joiners, that fail to submit a 2025 CoP within the submission period will be listed as ‘Non-communicating’ on their participant profile.
‘Non-communicating’ participants that do not submit a late CoP by 31 December 2025 will be delisted from the UN Global Compact on 1 January 2026.
.png)
Preparing your Communication on Progress
-
Review the CoP Questionnaire to understand which data needs to be collected.
-
Use the CoP Guidebook for support in answering the questionnaire, such as calculation guidance and a glossary of key terms.
-
Optional: complete the CoP Questionnaire as a draft using the Excel or PDF version.
-
Begin your data collection process on time using CoP support materials on the CoP Academy page and the CoP Data Compilation Checklist (see p. 73).
-
Ensure that you have access to the UN Global Compact dashboard. Refer to the User's Guide to learn how to request credentials.
Submitting your Communication on Progress
Complete the CoP Questionnaire on our platform, accessible via your participant Dashboard. Note that the Excel file and PDF cannot be uploaded. Note that the CEO Statement of Continued Support is integrated into the platform and does not require a separate file. Participants are welcome to include supplementary materials in their CoP submission. Please note that such materials, along with the rest of the CoP, will be publicly available upon submission. Once submitted, the CoP will be available to download as a PDF file by the participant through the digital platform. Additionally, the CoP will be publicly available to view on each respective participant profile.
Please note that all data, including supplemental documentation that was submitted by a participating company through the CoP digital platform, will be made publicly available on the UN Global Compact website. This data may be used by the UN Global Compact in aggregate form to present trends or included in reports about the status of corporate sustainability. The UN Global Compact does not have any responsibility on the accuracy of the data submitted by its participating companies nor on how this public data will be used by other stakeholders.
Upcoming Events
Check out the upcoming German webinars of our colleagues at the UN Global Compact Network Germany for further support.
Contact person
Tabea Böglin
Programme Manager Social Sustainability, ESG Reporting and Regulations