The role of the procurement function in realisingsustainable development goals : an empirical study ofan emerging economy’s oil & gas sector

This research is motivated by the unsustainable nature of some oil and gas (O&G) firms’ activities,especially in developing countries and the dearth of research works about sustainable procurement(SP) within these countries. The O&G sector is characterized by complexity known to generateseveral negative impacts on humans and the environment. Our literature review reveals how SPpractices can help improve the environmental, social and economic performance of practising firms,thereby leading to sustainable development of their immediate communities and the society ingeneral. The aim of this research is to explore SP practices within the Nigerian O&G sector and toinvestigate how these practices can help firms achieve sustainable development goals. Aquestionnaire was used to collect primary data, which was analysed using exploratory factor analysisto ascertain the level of relationship between the research variables, consisting of environmental,social and economic aspects of sustainability. The research findings did not only indicate that somesustainable development goals (SDGs) can be achieved through the adoption of SP practices, but italso shows that the adoption of SP practices can help improve the performance of O&G companies.The result further indicates that government policies and regulations constitute a key driving forcefor firms to adopt sustainable practices