Journal of Global Ecology and Environment

Biodiversity loss presents an escalating threat to ecological stability and economic resilience, particularly in developing economies such as Nigeria, where land-use pressures from business operations are intensifying. This study critically examines how biodiversity conservation is prioritized and integrated within corporate sustainability disclosures across five key business sectors in Nigeria: Oil & Gas/Power, Agriculture, Infrastructure, Manufacturing, and Financial Services, selected based on their ecological footprint and prominence in Nigeria’s economy. Drawing on content analysis of 100 publicly available sustainability reports, the research evaluates biodiversity inclusion using a custom framework aligned with international standards such as the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI 304) and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. Six criteria with 30 Attributes were applied to assess sectoral performance. The findings reveal a systemic underperformance in the overall biodiversity disclosure, with only 14% of attributes fully addressed, 21.5% partially addressed, and a striking 64.5% not addressed at all. While the agriculture and oil & gas/power sectors demonstrated comparatively stronger integration, performance across infrastructure, manufacturing, and financial services was consistently weak. Key areas such as biodiversity monitoring, restoration, and institutional investment were largely absent from corporate reporting. This study concludes that biodiversity remains a marginal concern in Nigerian corporate ESG frameworks and sustainability reports. To address this gap, the research advocates for enforceable, sector-specific biodiversity disclosure requirements, improved access to ecological data, and incentive-based mechanisms to encourage biodiversity-positive business practices. Embedding biodiversity as a core pillar of corporate sustainability is critical not only for ecological preservation but also for long-term economic resilience.