IMPACT OF CORPORATE GOVERNANCE VARIABLES ON THE ENVIRONMENTAL DISCLOSURE IN NIGERIAN COMPANIES
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1    BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY
 Disclosure of environmental performance in an annual report is to reflect the level of accountability, responsibility, and corporate transparency to investors and other stakeholders (Deegan &Brown, 2008). Environmental aspects of the disclosure are contained in the company’s annual report and aim to disclose information relating to the environment, In this way company can benefit from the positive attention, trust and support of the community, Based on this opinion environmental disclosure can help companies in getting support and capital issues from stakeholders and investors, In addition it can be to access the impact of risk that may be incurred by the company’s operations and reduce the effect of its activities on the environment, so that the company’s image and external legitimacy can be improved.(Deegan & Brown, 2008).  
            Studies conducted to date on corporate governance and environmental disclosures have shown that corporate governance mechanism have influence on corporate environmental disclosure, However in Nigeria corporate environmental disclosure is still on voluntary basis (Onyali, Okafor & Egolum, 2014). Therefore it is inconclusive if such characteristics and voluntary initiation alone would also influence corporate environmental disclosure in Nigeria’s firms (Onyali et al., 2014).
     Corporate Environmental disclosure (CED) entails the financial and non–financial disclosure of social and environmental aspects upon which firms activities have an impact on its environment. There is a dearth of literature on Corporate Environmental Disclosure in Nigeria.
1.2   STATEMENT OF RESEARCH PROBLEM
There is a large difference in the volume of corporate governance and environmental disclosure research in countries with developed capital markets when compared to countries with less developed capital markets. In countries with developed capital market and effective legal/regulatory frameworks, a significant amount of research on corporate governance and environmental disclosure has been executed (Marston & Shrives, 2016). Unfortunately, this is not the case with countries with less developed markets. In less developed countries, there is a scarcity of research on corporate governance and environmental disclosure; in all sincerity, this should not be so (Okpara, Bhasin & Oluwagbemiga, 2014). In comparison with corporate governance and environmental disclosure in developed countries; in developing countries, there are generally lower disclosure standards, weaker regulatory and legal systems as well as limited enforcement capacity (Okike, 2007). There is significant state ownership or holding of many private business corporations in developing countries.(Samaha, Dahawy, Hussainey &Stapleton, 2012).
       The intention of this research is to examine if corporate governance mechanisms such as board size, board independence, gender diversity and frequency of board meetings influences the level of corporate environmental disclosure specifically in the firms in Nigeria. The increasing environmental issues of which companies tend to have a profound impact on the environment calls for examination of the quality of environmental disclosure voluntarily provided in the annual reports to creating awareness among the stakeholder. Therefore, the primary objective of this study was to examine the relationship between corporate governance and corporate environmental disclosure.
Flowing from the above, this study is set to proffer solution to the following research questions.  
1.     Is there a significant relationship between board size and environmental disclosure in Nigerian firm?
2.    Is there a significant relationship between board independence and environmental disclosure in Nigerian firm?
3.    Is there a significant relationship between gender diversity and environmental disclosure in Nigerian firm?
4.    Is there a significant relationship between frequency of board meetings and environmental disclosure in Nigerian firm?
1.3    STATEMENT OF RESEARCH OBJECTIVE
The main objective of this study is to ascertain the impact of corporate governance on corporate environmental disclosure in Nigeria. The specific objectives of this study are:   
1.    To determine if there is a significant relationship between board size and environmental disclosure.
2.    To ascertain if there is a significant relationship between board independence and environmental disclosure.
3.    To examine if there is a significant relationship between board gender diversity and environmental disclosure.
4.    To establish if there is a significant relationship between frequency of board meetings and environmental disclosures
1.4    RESEARCH HYPOTHESES
In line with the objectives of this study, the following hypotheses will be formulated in null form:
1.    There is no significant relationship between board size and environmental disclosure in Nigerian firms.
2.    There is no significant relationship between board independence and environmental disclosure in Nigerian firms.
3.    There is no significant relationship between board gender diversity and environmental disclosure in Nigerian firms.
4.    There is no significant relationship between frequency of board meetings and environmental disclosure in Nigerian firms.
1.5     SCOPE OF THE STUDY
This study basically investigates the effects of corporate governance variables on environmental disclosure. Some of the attributes of corporate governance variables used in this study include: board size, board independence, board gender diversity, frequency of board meetings.
To achieve this objective, the corporate annual reports in 15 companies ranging between the periods of four years (2012-2016) will be analyzed. The choice of these firms arises based on their direct or indirect contribution to the environmental.
1.6    SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
    This study is expected to provide useful insight into improving environmental disclosure quality. The study contributes to the accounting literature as it provides additional empirical evidence on the impact corporate governance on environmental disclosure quality.The study also will be useful to stakeholders in Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) as it provides evidence on the relationship between corporate governance attributes andenvironmental disclosure quality and the reform instituted by them in formulating the code of corporate governance for listed companies in Nigeria.
 Other significance of the study are:
•     It also provides an insight to organizations on how to satisfy the growing demands and continuous yearning for the voluntary disclosure of corporate environmental information in their annual reports.
•    Financial institution: More so, it makes available for banks both within the financial institution on the need for environmental improvement and environmental performance. This in the long run, helps to visualize an image of the banks as having a moral obligation to account for its environmental activities.
•    Policy-makers: Furthermore, this study will educate policy-makers on ways in which the environmental performance of companies can be measured and analyzed using ISO requirements.
•    Researchers: it serves as a beacon for other researchers that are involved in carrying out studies that are inter-country based, especially within the context of developing economies. Finally, this study serves as a reference point for subsequent research on environmental disclosure practices in Nigerian banking sector.
1.7    LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY
The study identifies the following limitations:
Firstly, there is the challenge of inappropriate measurement of variables such as those addressed in this study are examined. Thus in dealing with such issues, the potential for subjectivity is often inevitable.
 In addition, the smallness of the sample size is also considered a limitation. This occurs both in terms of the respondents for the study and in the geographical spread to be covered. It also suffices to note that a study of this nature is constrained by time and resources. This is because this research needs to be carried out simultaneously when the academic work is going on.
Also, the eventual analysis of the research findings is always subject to the assumption that the respondents have provided a true opinion to the questions and often times this cannot be ascertained by the researcher.