Environmental Audit and Corporate Performance of Listed Manufacturing Companies: An Emerging Market Experience

This study investigates the effect of environmental audit practices on the corporate performance of listed manufacturing companies in Nigeria. Specifically, it examines whether corporate performance can be influenced by environmental compliance (environmental violation report and regulation compliance) and environmental risk management (risk assessment and risk disclosure) practices. The annual reports and corporate websites covering 2014 to 2024 of listed manufacturing companies are the main sources of secondary data. Descriptive and inferential statistics were engaged using the panel estimation technique with the application of fixed effects to test the significant impacts of the variables. The results showed that regulatory compliance, risk assessment, and risk disclosure exhibited significant positive effects on corporate performance. However, the environmental violation report was statistically insignificant. Overall, environmental audits enhanced the performance and operational efficiency of listed companies in Nigeria. The study recommends that manufacturing companies should institutionalize internal compliance monitoring systems and integrate environmental risk assessment into enterprise risk management frameworks to enhance the quality of environmental audit and performance.