Board Characteristics and Sustainability Reporting in Listed Food and Beverage Firms in Nigeria

This study investigates the relationship between board characteristics and sustainability reporting in listed food and beverage firms in Nigeria. The food and beverage sector is among the largest on the Nigerian Exchange Group and has increasingly come under pressure from regulators, consumers, and institutional investors to integrate sustainability considerations into governance disclosures. Board characteristics, including size, independence, gender diversity, and director expertise, have been identified in recent literature as predictors of sustainability reporting quality. Drawing on resource dependence theory and upper echelons theory, this study examines which board attributes most significantly predict the depth and credibility of sustainability disclosures. An ex-post facto design is adopted, using content analysis of sustainability and annual reports of eighteen listed food and beverage companies over four years. A sustainability disclosure index is constructed using Global Reporting Initiative and Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria criteria. Panel regression analysis controls for firm size, profitability, and leverage. The study expects board gender diversity and director expertise to be the strongest predictors of sustainability reporting quality. Findings will contribute to ongoing ESG governance discussions in Nigeria and assist the Securities and Exchange Commission in formulating sustainability disclosure requirements. Keywords: board characteristics, sustainability reporting, food and beverage firms, corporate governance, Nigeria.