Corporate Governance and Financial Performance of Listed Agricultural Companies in Nigeria

Abstract

This study examine the effect of corporate governance on the financial performance of listed agricultural companies in Nigeria. The population consisted of 5 agricultural companies listed on the Nigerian Exchange Group. Agency theory served as the theoretical foundation of the research. A purposive sampling technique was applied, and all 5 listed agricultural companies were selected as the sample size. Secondary data were sourced from the audited annual reports of these companies covering the period 2014–2024. ARDL was employed to test the study’s hypotheses using E-Views 10 econometric software. The results revealed that; there is positive and significant effect of audit committee on return on equity of listed Agricultural companies in Nigeria; there is positive and significant effect of board size on return on equity of listed Agricultural companies in Nigeria; there is negative and significant effect of board independence on return on equity of listed Agricultural companies in Nigeria; and there is positive and insignificant effect of ownership structure on return on equity of listed Agricultural companies in Nigeria.. Based on these findings, the study concludes that corporate governance plays a significant role in shaping the financial performance of listed agricultural companies in Nigeria. It therefore recommends that companies should strengthen the independence, competence, and effectiveness of their audit committees to improve shareholder value, while also streamlining monitoring processes to reduce bureaucratic bottlenecks and compliance costs that may impair efficient asset utilization.