SUSTAINABILITY DISCLOSURE PRACTICE AND FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE OF QUOTED PHARMACEUTICAL FIRMS IN NIGERIA
Abstract
Triggered by the persistent high inflationary trend among other fierce dynamic business environments that characterize the Nigerian business landscape, the study examines the effects of sustainability disclosures on the financial performance of quoted pharmaceutical companies in Nigeria. Community development cost disclosure, employee welfare cost disclosure and environmental protection cost disclosure are the dimensions of the predictor variable while return on assets and profit after tax measure financial performance. Panel regression analysis techniques with the aid E-views were employed to estimate the residuals of the econometric models for multi-year period on audited annual reports of the pharmaceutical firms. The results show that disclosing Community Development Costs, Employee Welfare Costs, and Environmental Protection Costs has a positive and statistically significant effect on Return on Assets and profit after tax, implying that sustainable investments improve asset utilization efficiency in the pharmaceutical sector. Similarly, Community Development Cost Disclosure and Employee Welfare Cost Disclosure have a positive and substantial impact on profit after tax, although Environmental Protection Cost Disclosure, related positively but insignificantly. The study concludes that investing in sustainability disclosures has a significant effect on the financial performance of Nigerian publicly traded pharmaceutical companies. It is recommended that pharmaceutical firms' management teams incorporate sustainability disclosure practices into their business models because they significantly increase profit after tax and return on assets, whereas environmental investment disclosures ensure long-term competitive advantage, regulatory compliance, and public trust. Furthermore, regulatory authorities should strengthen sustainability disclosure required indices for the pharmaceutical industry to adopt for consistent reporting, as well as providing incentives such as tax credits or green finance to encourage acceptable practice. The pharmaceutical business in a developing market revealed that sustainability disclosures serve not only as ethical imperatives but also as strategic financial performance levers, which is why comprehensive reporting is sought.
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