THE EFFECT OF CORPORATE GOVERNANCE ON AUDIT REPORT TIMELINESS

ABSTRACT

The study examines the impact of corporate governance on audit report timeliness in Nigerian listed companies. The descriptive design was used to achieve this objective. A sample of 30 companies was selected from the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX). Secondary data was analyzed using descriptive statistics, correlational analysis, ANOVA, and regression models.The study found a weak linear association between audit report lag and corporate governance variables, including board size, board independence, board meetings, audit committee size, and audit committee meetings. The regression model showed that 12.5% of the variations in audit report lag can be explained by the independent variables. The results indicate a negative significant relationship between board independence and audit report lag, and a positive significant relationship between audit committee meeting and audit report lag. However, there is a negative non significant relationship between board size and audit report lag. It highlights the importance of effective corporate governance in ensuring timely audit reports. The findings suggest that companies with independent boards and active audit committees are more likely to publish their audit reports in a timely manner. The study contributes to the existing literature on corporate governance and audit report timeliness in Nigeria.