Corporate Governance Mechanisms and Sustainability Reporting Practices of Listed Firms in Nigeria

In this study, we examined how corporate governance structures (director remuneration (DR), audit committee efficacy (ACE), and efficiency of sustainability/risk committee (ESC)) affect sustainability reporting practices (SRP) of listed manufacturing firms in Nigeria. The research employed an ex post facto design to gather cross-sectional data over six years spanning 2018–2023 from annual reports of forty (40) purposively selected listed firms on the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX). Prais–Winsten regression was employed to analyze the effects of DR, ACE, and ESC on SRP using firm size (FS) as a moderating variable and audit quality (AQ) as a control variable. The results revealed that directors’ remuneration and audit committee effectiveness do not substantially affect sustainability reporting, contradicting the idea that more pay to directors and successful audit committees improve sustainability reporting. However, the efficiency of the sustainability/risk management committee adversely affects sustainability reporting, demonstrating that these committees may not always encourage openness. The size of a firm influences the relationship between corporate governance practices and sustainability reporting, showing that bigger enterprises have different patterns. Audit quality improved sustainability reporting, highlighting its importance in openness and accountability. The NGX sustainability guideline (a four-dimensional approach of economic, environmental, social, and governance) was used, thereby advancing sustainability discourse in Nigeria. Our result is robust regarding the sustainability practices among publicly traded companies in Nigeria, as the research included firms from three sub-sectors of consumer goods, industrial goods, and conglomerates in the sample.