The Nigerian press and environmental information for sustainable development

The prominence accorded the environment and the importance of public engagement in sustainable development issues during the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development underscores the role of environmental information in achieving local environmental sustainability goals. The paper examines the role of the Nigerian press, one of the most vibrant in sub-Saharan Africa, in reporting environmental issues at the turn of the twenty-first century. Two national newspapers, The Daily Times and The Guardian were content analysed for coverage of environmental issues, including climate change, for the 5-year period 1999-2003. The degree of prominence and nature of environmental reports are assessed. The results show that energy issues dominate reports on the environment in both newspapers while climate change, a critical global environmental issue is accorded very little attention. Both newspapers assessed are yet to actively feature environmental articles tailored to issues of everyday life as majority of environmental publications are news reports.