Professional Accounting Ethics and Sustainability Advocacy in Nigeria

In Nigeria, the application of accounting ethics has gained significant attention due to increased awareness of corporate social responsibility but the rising demand for sustainable business practices is low. The effective implementation of sustainability practices has not been advocated by many firms due to unclear direction as to who is responsible for what, hindered by ethical challenges and large volume of financial reporting within the accounting profession. Hence, the study aimed to investigate the effect professional accounting ethics (integrity, objectivity, professional competency and due care, confidentiality and professional behaviour) on sustainability advocacy in Nigeria. Survey research design was adopted and the use of regression method of analysis was employed to analyse the generated data. The sample size was 384 professional and certified accountants who are members of ICAN, ACCA and ANAN. The field data generated were normalized, valid and reliable for this study. Finding revealed that professional accounting ethics (integrity, objectivity, professional competency and due care, confidentiality and professional behaviour) significantly enhance environmental, social and governance advocacies in Nigeria. The study concluded that professional accounting ethics of integrity, objectivity, professional competency and due care, confidentiality and professional behaviour improve sustainability advocacy via environmental, social and governance advocacies in Nigeria. Thus, the study recommended that various organizations should embrace professional accounting ethics of integrity, objectivity, professional competency and due care, confidentiality and professional behaviour among accountants in order to enhance sustainability advocacy in Nigeria.