Ethical corporate social responsibility disclosure and earnings quality of listed non-financial firms in Nigeria: the moderating role of corporate governance from 2016-2025

The study examined ethical corporate social responsibility disclosure and earnings quality of listed non-financial firms in Nigeria using the moderating role of corporate governance from 2016-2025. The study acknowledged that corporate reporting scenery has undergone many changes in the last few decades. The theoretical framework that the study anchored on was the stakeholder theory. The research design used in the study was the ex-post facto research design. The population of the study comprise of all the non-financial companies quoted on Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX) for the period of study 2016-2025. The study made use of purposive sampling method. The study used the secondary data from different corporate and regulatory sources. The results indicate that there is a positive relationship between ethical CSR disclosure and earnings quality of listed non-financial companies in Nigeria. Companies that articulate their social, environmental, and ethical responsibilities also have a greater likelihood of having transparent reporting and less earnings manipulation. The study concluded that ethical CSR disclosure and good corporate governance are significant aspects of enhancing the credibility of financial reporting and stakeholder’s confidence of listed non-financial companies in Nigeria. It was recommended that companies should ensure that CSR disclosure is improved by providing detailed information on employee practices, environment and community practices and ethical practices to make it more transparent and trustworthy.