Ecolinguistics and Public Health Communication in Nigeria: The Role of Billboard Messages in Promoting Environmental Sanitation

Cite this article as: Ojetunde, C. F., Yede, F. S., Osipeju, B. S., & Ojetunde, E. I. (2025). Ecolinguistics and public health communication in Nigeria: The role of billboard messages in promoting environmental sanitation. Sokoto Journal of Linguistics and Communication Studies (SOJOLICS), 1(1), 154–164. www.doi.org/10.36349/sojolics.2025.v01i01.019

ECOLINGUISTICS AND PUBLIC HEALTH COMMUNICATION IN NIGERIA: THE ROLE OF BILLBOARD MESSAGES IN PROMOTING ENVIRONMENTAL SANITATION

By

Prof. Ojetunde Cecilia Folasade

folasade.ojetunde@yahoo.com, ojetundecf@lasued.edu.ng

Department of English Education, College of Languages and Communication Arts Education,

Lagos State University of Education, Oto/ Ijanikin, Lagos.

&

Dr. Yede Francis Setonji

yedefrancis967@gmail.com

Department of English Education, College of Languages and Communication Arts Education,

Lagos State University of Education, Oto/ Ijanikin, Lagos

&

Dr. Osipeju Babasola Samuel

osipejubs@lasued.edu.ng

Department of English Education, College of Languages and Communication Arts Education,

Lagos State University of Education, Oto/ Ijanikin, Lagos

&

Ojetunde, Emmanuel Iniolu (Field Engineer)

ololadeini@gmail.com

African Natural Resources and Mines, An African Industries Group Company,

Kaduna Road , Abuja.

Abstract

This study explored how language, ecology, and the environment intersect by examining how billboard inscriptions shape public attitudes and behaviours toward environmental sanitation and health in Nigeria. The study aimed to assess public awareness of billboard messages, evaluate the influence of linguistic and visual elements on public attitudes, and determine their impact on sanitation-related behaviors. Data were collected through a self-designed questionnaire with four sections containing items on awareness, message clarity, behavioural impact, and suggestions for improvement. A total of 124 participants including students, civil servants, and self-employed individuals, were purposively and randomly selected from Epe, Eredo, Agbowa-Ikosi, and Ijebu-Ode in Lagos and Ogun States. These areas represent both rural and urban communities where environmental sanitation remains a major concern. Data were analyzed using the Pearson Product Moment Correlation to examine relationships among awareness, perception, message clarity, and behavioral outcomes. Results showed a moderately strong positive correlation between awareness and behavioural impact (r = 0.441, p < 0.01), and an average positive correlation between message clarity and behavioural impact (r = 0.316, p < 0.01). A weaker but significant correlation (r = 0.284, p < 0.01) was found between awareness and message engagement, suggesting that awareness alone may not ensure comprehension. Most respondents were young (under 30), largely female, and mainly higher education students, likely due to the online data collection method. The study recommends regularly updating visually appealing and clearly worded billboards to improve communication, waste management, pollution control, and public health practices.

Keywords: Ecolinguistics, Environmental Sanitation, Health, Billboard, Inscriptions

1. Introduction

The term Ecolinguistics is a combination of ecology and linguistics. As noted by Nasir et al. (2022) in Yasmin and Amin (2024), the paradigm of Ecolinguuistics emerged in the 1990s, though the credit for its idea goes to Einar Haugen who defines it as “the study of the interactions between any given language and its environment. Ecolinguistics mainly encompasses ecology and linguistics; it is a field that intersects natural science and social science. Based on this, there are many different views of various scholars from different backgrounds on the ecolinguistics. Two major approaches are involved in studying Ecolinguistics, using linguistic frameworks as postulated by Haugen and Halliday, namely, the Haugenian approach (also known as Linguistic Ecology) and the Hallidayan approach (known asEcological linguistics) (Changchen, 2023). Linguistic ecology is however identified as being wider and more inclined to be natural science (Haung and Li,2021). Haung and Chen, (2018) classify ecolinguistics into two categories: micro-ecolinguistics which is a branch of linguistics and macro-linguistics based onthe current research situation is a trans-disciplineand above linguistics. Simply put, Ecolinguistics is an interdisciplinary field that examines the relationship between language, ecology and environment. In Nigeria, where environmental issues are pressing due to rapid urbanization, industrialization and population growth, Ecolinguistics can play a crucial role in promoting environmental sanitation and health. This study focuses on bill board inscriptions as a medium of communication, exploring how language used in public spaces can influence public awareness and behaviour regarding the environmental health.

Bill board inscriptions serve as a powerful tool for disseminating information, shaping public perception, and encouraging sustainable practices. Analysing billboard messages helps understand better their impact on community awareness, attitudes and community health. This exploration reveals how effective communication strategies can contribute to improved environmental practices and public health outcomes in Nigeria. Through this, we can appreciate the potential of ecolinguistics to foster a more environmental conscious society, ultimately leading to a healthier population and a more sustainable environment.

Based on this, the specific objectives of this study are to:

 i. investigate public awareness of bill board messages on environmental sanitation and health,

 ii. analysehow linguistic and visual choices influence public attitudes, and

 iii. determine the effect of the information on public behavior towards sanitation and health.

2. Literature Review

Environmental Sanitation in Nigeria

Environmental sanitation is a critical determinant of public health in Nigeria, where inadequate waste management, open defecation, and poor hygiene practices contribute to prevalence of diseases such as cholera, malaria and typhoid. Effective communication strategies are essential to raise awareness and promotebehavioural change. Billboards, as a form of outdoor advertising, have been identified as potential tools for disseminating health information. This literature review examines the role of language on billboard inscriptions in addressing environmental hazards occasioned by improper waste management.

Observing environmental hygiene across Nigerian villages, cities and urban areasis worthwhile. Even though there are clean urban and rural areas in Nigeria, the number of untidy places supersedes that of tidy places in Nigeria. Despite nationwide sanitation exercises, many areas remain untidy. The environmental sanitation exercise is always carried out on the last Saturday of every month; people engage in digging up and pack dirt from the neighbourhood and thereafter heap them by the side of the gutters to be collected into loading trucks for final disposal. Unfortunately, this garbage finds its way back into the gutters causing a terrible environmental issue especially during raining season.

The setbacks that cause poor execution of environmental sanitation exercise is due to the fact many Nigerians seem to have no time for that day in their schedules, also the most likely in a rush to beat the time and travel, which often create negligence of the sanitation day. Alabi (2010) describes that the state of environmental sanitation in Nigeria has yet to be adequately addressed adequately for a long time now. The practice and situation of Environmental sanitation in Nigeria are examined based on geographical location with observations that in many rural settlements in Nigeria, there areinadequate waste management technologies and systems coupled with poor behavioural habits in practising waste disposal. In actual fact, waste in the form of human faeces is passed into streams and rivers from which people get their drinking water as such, poses serious health hazards in rural places. Considering the urban settlement, Uchegbu (2002) notes that in underdeveloped places, a greater amount of domestic wastesare vegetables and organic materials, which include human faeces. Akinboade (2012) cites that, “poor environmental sanitation has resultant effects on human health which could include high morbidity and mortality rates with presence of diseases evident in the victims such as cholera, diarrhoea, dysentery and typhoid. General access to environmental sanitation facilities and services by citizens remains very poor (Akpabio, 2012). Furthermore, Heaps of refuse have continued to cause a negative distraction to tourism and loss of wealth creating opportunities through recycling.” Akinboade (2012) also reported that during the observation of the Annual Environmental Sanitation Day, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) asserted that a significant number of people die yearly due to poor environmental sanitation in Nigeria.

Nigeria, having a population of 120 million (Sridhar and Adeoye, 2003), generated 0.58Kg solid wastes per person per day, and in some Nigerian cities as follows: Abeokuta in Ogun state (0.60Kg/person/day), Ado-Ekiti in Ekiti state (0.71Kg/person/day), Akure in Ondo state (0.54Kg/person /day), Ile-Ife in Osun state (0.46Kg/person/day) and Ibadan in Oyo state (0.71Kg/person/day) (Adewunmi et al., 2005). About 55,200Kg per day of solid wasteswas estimated to be generated in the traditional city of Oyo in Oyo state (Abel and Afolabi, 2007). GEO (2000) considers the population of Lagos to be10.3 million, reports the solid wastes generation of 3.7 million tons per year for Lagos in 1990, and 401Kg/capita/year for Ibadan in 1997. Considering the population of Kano to be 1.4 million, Lewcock (1994) gave an estimate of total solid wastes generated in the city as 450tonne per day. The per capita solid wastes generation in Ilorin, the capital city of Kwara state, was projected to be 0.43Kg/person/day by the year 2020 (Yusuf and Oyewumi, 2008). As reported by Oluwemimo (2007), solid wastes generation in Maiduguri in Borno state, showed an estimate of 8.5 million tons for the year 2002 (Dauda and Osita, 2003). Ajao and Anurigwo, (2002) conducteda study on solid wastes generation in Port Harcourt in River state, and Warri in Delta state,the reports showed an estimate of 164,029tons/year and 66,721tons /year, respectively. Makurdi, an urban city in Benue state, generated a household solid wastes of 0.54Kg/capita/day (Sha’Ato et al., 2006). Aziegbe (2007) recorded high generation of all sorts of polyethylene packaging materials in Benin. Between 0.55Kg and 0.58Kg of solid wastes per person per day was generated in Abuja (Imam et al., 2007).

As stated in the findings byDaramola and Olowoporoku (2016), the environmental sanitation practices are reflections of residents’ socio-economic characteristics such as educational attainment, household size, and income but not with age and marital status in the State of Osogbo, Nigeria. These findings are in consistency with the results of some previous studies (Daramola, 2015; Adejumo, 2013; Daramola, 2012; Hunter et al. 2004; Dunlap et al, 2000; Stern, 2000) which have indicated that there is a significant statistical association between characteristics such as education, income, household size and place of residence and residents’ environmental practices. Daramola and Olowoporoku (2016) concluded thatthere is low level of access to adequate environmental amenities such as pipe-borne water supply, toilets, drains and solid waste disposal services across Osogbo residential zones. This is suggestive of the fact that poor environmental sanitation could most likely be experienced in low-income residential areas who can afford basic amenities in Nigeria.

Many residents in Nigerian states especially in rural communities could attest to the fact that the standard of environmental sanitation in Nigeria is inadequate. It is worthy to note that the issue of environmental sanitation is a fundamental human responsibility. The need to make the citizens more conscious of environmental hygiene is important for better waste disposal habits and environmental ethical responsibility. The attitude and behavioural practices of the citizens determine the end (Bello, 2007).

Environmental Health in Nigeria

Nigerian environs in recent timeshas been undergoing drastic changes and rapidly turning to industrialization as many manufacturing industries, oil refineries, and factories are been established in major cities. Also, Nigeria's fast population growth has caused environmental-related problems (Amegah et al, 2017).Limited rural infrastructure has caused high migration to cities, increasing environmental problems (Babanyara et al, 2010).Problems such as air pollution, water pollution, poor solid waste management systems, urban poverty, and flooding increase, cause more risk to the environment and the population in highly industrialized cities in Nigeria. Climate change has been evident in almost all parts of Nigeria(Akpodiogaga et al, 2010), such as excess flooding in the south-east and north-central region, a decline in rainfall in the Northeastern and southern region, and temperature increase in all regions of thecountry. There are several health issues in Nigeria as a country, such as control of some disease vectors, maternal mortality, infectious diseases, poor hygiene and sanitation, disease surveillance, and road traffic injuries. Additionally, like many other countries, Nigeria faces environmental health-related problems, including environmental hazards and the insufficiency of basic human necessities. However, no adequate programmes for addressing environmental health issues in the country and has resulted in a small health status improvement (Abdulraheem, 2012).

Actors and their roles by UNEP (2009) explained that good environmental governance focuses on the significance of all actors whose decision could have an impact on the sanitary conditions of the environment. It is indicative that there are significant numbers of actors in environmental governance. International establishments, the government, businesses, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and the public at large have been identified as key actors in environmental governance in Nigeria States. Nigeria’s state actors in environmental governance are categorized into three: the national, state, and local. The Executive, Legislative, and Judicial bodies are the primary actors who can be found in all three tiers of government. At this stage, environmental governance is aimed to intervene in environmental issues through environmental policy, law, the formation of regulatory agencies, and the imposition of sanctions. The executive branch of government is usually tasked with developing and enforcing environmental policies. This arm is also responsible for ensuring inter-unit coordination and cooperation among government regulatory authorities at all levels of government to prevent jurisdictional duplication that could result in inadequate implementation of environmental legislation and policy, as well as providing adequate budgetary allocation for regulatory body activities. The legislature is the government’s decision-making arm, with the authority to enact, amend, and repeal legislation. As a result, it serves as a relevant legal foundation for all environmental policy instruments. The legislature is expected to be capable of conducting effective investigations and analyses to provide guidance in the process of amending the existing legislation and the enactment of new ones. This branch typically has the sole power to amend and approve (environmental) budgets, as well as to check the executive arm of government through legislative oversight functions (Ayade, 2003). The legislature can also influence environmental policy by serving on the parliamentary committee on the environment. The judiciary interprets (environmental) laws, and jurists, as members of the government’s judicial arm, interpret the growing number of interconnected environmental concerns brought to their attention. They also make decisions on cases involving environmental liability and compensation. Corporate environmental governance assesses the manner in which businesses manage their environmental action, risks, and possibilities. All companies or businesses own the environment a duty of care, which falls under the purview of corporate environmental governance. Non-state actors Backstrand& Saward (2005) opine that wider involvement of non-state actors in multilateral environmental decisions, usually in a range of context such as goal-setting, awareness campaign, soliciting, supervising, consultation, and execution, increases environmental governance’s democratic legitimacy. Non-State Actors (NSAs) are stakeholders who are not representatives of states but perform on a global scale and have the potential to influence international relations (Higgot et al., 2000).

Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are among the non-state environmental governance actors in Nigeria, regardless of their levels of operation (local, national, or international). In Nigeria, there are numerous non-governmental organizations (NGOs) dedicated solely to environmental protection, conservation, and awareness. Among them Women Environmental Programme (WEP), the Havids Centre for Environment and Development, the Bioresources Development & Conservation Programme, the Association for Waste Recovery & Renewable Energy, the Grassroots Community Development Initiative, and the Africa Safe Water Foundation. They participate in a variety of development programs, from disaster management to sustainable livelihoods; environmental awareness to watershed development; and joint forest management to policy input. They formulate environmental policies and encourage public commitment to environmental conservation. Their activities are so beneficial that the government regards non-governmental organizations (NGOs) not only as organizations that will assist in the implementation of their programmes, but also as collaborators in policy and programme development.

Nigeria is a vast and diverse country, therefore, one of the most effective ways of reaching the widest possible audience is through mass media. Apart from setting an environmental agenda, mass media is an extremely effective tool for environmental communication (Babalola et al., 2010; Tsegyu and Ogoshi, 2015; Valenti, 2021; Waititu, 2021). As a result, the media plays an important role in environmental governance in Nigeria.

Looking at it critically, the government at different levels has put different measures in place to ensure that the citizenry live in an environment free of pollution and different forms of health hazards. As language is key to the overall development of a society, this study aims at investigating how language could also be used to disseminate and create awareness of the need to live in a healthy environment through billboard inscriptions.

The Role of Language in Health Education

Language is essential for the survival of any society. In every sector of the society, especially the health sector, language plays a pivotal role (Nutbeam, 2021; Jain & Singh, 2020; Perez-Stable, 2023; Abdel-Latif, 2020; Basu & Hogard, 2022; and Sorensen, 2021). According to these scholars, effective use of language in health education facilitates effective transmission of knowledge, shape attitudes and influence behaviour. Among other roles, language use in the health sector helps to communicate health information, as it functions primarily to deliver health messages clearly and accurately through posters, billboards, instruction or usage manuals, public service announcement as well as pamphlets among others. Miscommunication through language barriers or unclear means can lead to disaster, as it can lead to misinformation and health risk.

Language also plays an empowering role, especially as it helps people to make informed choices the moment they understand health messages. As observed by Nutbeam (2021), health literacy is not only about knowing to read; it involves understanding and using information appropriately; and language is central to each of these processes. This is regarded as linguistic clarity and cultural relevance, which Sørensen et al. (2021) observe helped to improved public health behaviours in Europe.

It is also important to note that using local languages and culturally appropriate expressions increases trust and compliance. Such appropriate use of language helps to address health taboos, beliefs and misconceptions in a culturally acceptable way especially as it is believed in Africa that subjects such as sexual health, HIV, fertility and cancer are taboos; however, using euphemisms, idioms, or proverbs in the local language can help avoid direct confrontation, and such topics can be discussed and addressed openly.

In health communication, language is a powerful instrument for behaviour modification and persuasion. It influences how people develop beliefs; view risks, and adopt healthy habits. Public health adverts, such as those advocating for vaccination acceptance, HIV prevention, or malaria control, purposefully use language that evokes strong feelings, affect their beliefs against their culture, and inspires actions. However, asNoar& Zimmerman (2022) put it, using language effectively to persuade and modify behaviour could be key. A good example is framing the use of condom to prevent HIVmore communal than fear-based appeals. The former can be seen as protecting loved ones rather than the fear of contracting the disease. Such is the use of language on the billboard to inform, persuade and sensitize the populace on the importance of environment sanitation and health in rural and urban communities to combat communicable diseases.

Billboard Advertisement and Environmental Sanitation

Bill-board advertisement is one of the most effective out‑of‑home media. Billboards are unique due to their size, strategic placement and vivid visuals which “catch the eyes of passerby and impress them with a concise but powerful message” (Olagbere, 1997; Benson‑Eluwa, 2005). Consequently, Rolfe (2012) holds that solid waste reduction initiatives gains significantly from billboard campaigns because they promote environmental health awareness and foster behavioural change.Meanwhile, Bill-board sanitation advertisement determines public sanitation awareness through several interrelated mechanisms which include:

· Visibility and Attention which takes cognisance of the Bill-board sanitation advertisement bogus size, bright colours and high-traffic locations to improve message prominence and draw attention of the road users and the passers-by.

· Comprehension and Relevance utilises simple language and culturally related visuals to increase comprehension across literacy levels. The key to effective public communicationholds that message clarity and language adaptation are fundamental to retention and comprehension.

Motivation toward Action lies in the ability of theBill-board sanitation advertisementto launch campaigns that are linked to social norms or ongoing general sanitation effortssuch as Lagos state LAWMA’s public waste education programme which does not only raise awareness but help propel behavioural change.

Linguistic Features of Bill-board sanitation advertisement

Outdoor Bill-board sanitation advertisement utilizes concise and extremely centralised choice of words due to the limited time the viewing audience have to read. Because of the afore-mentioned reason, advertisers frequently employ ellipsis, a linguistic process which omits articles, auxiliary verbs or redundant linguistic items, to achievebrevity and at the same time toactualise clarity (Nnamdi‑Eruchalu, 2015).

Example: Explicit sanitation slogan like “Keep Lagos clean. Throw trash in bin.” can be adapted to “No litter, Lagos cleaner” through the use of ellipsis. Such ellipsis-based slogans direct and arrest the attention of the public to quickly process the substance of the Bill-board sanitation advertisement messages.

- The use of Repetition, Alliteration, Hyperbole and Metaphor

According to Iorember& Mohammed (2024), Linguistic analyses of Bill-board sanitation advertisement language in some of Nigerian cities show consistent use of figures of speech like:

Alliteration: e.g. “Bins bring better environments”,

Hyperbole:“Never dump—ever!”,

Metaphor:“Trash = taint on our city”
 The above-mentioned devices correspond with AIDA advertising principles, Attention–Interest–Desire–Action, to reinforce memorability and urgency.

- Use of Indigenous Language and Pidgin

Several studies have shown that use and employment of indigenous Nigerian languages or Pidgin English boosts engagement and comprehension among diverse audiences (Chima‑Omeike& Taiwo, 2015). It is noted that Nigerian Pidgin, recognized as an effective lingua franca in the South‑South, South East and in all the cosmopolitan cities, has featured prominently in Bill-board sanitation advertisementand has been used to reach broad audiences.

Example:PidginEnglish:“No dey spoil road o—use di bin!

Standard English “Don’t dirty the road—use the bin!”

The use of Pidgin English in the above Bill-board sanitation advertisement creates an informal tone with societal instruction and thereby make environmental sanitation messages societal based and relevant.

- Code-Mixing and Code-Switching

Bill-board sanitation advertisementoften combine Standard English with local languages or Pidgin to gain the attention of different sections of the audience. Such code-mixed renditions enhance comprehension and alsomaintain persuasive influence in English.

Example:
“Clean city, better life – no putyanmayanma for road, use the bin.”

- Lexical Abridgement and Neologisms

Bill-board sanitation advertisements often abridge words, create acronyms or coin new expression to catch public attention.

Abbreviations such as “Bin It!” or “Waste‑War” inscribed on trash bin on most of the bill-boards sanitation advertisement condense messages and evoke action

- Graphological Choices Amplify Language

The bill-boards sanitation advertisementutilises visual designs which ranges from font size to capitalization to enhance linguistic impact. According to Iorember and Mohammed (2024), Key words may sometimes be in upper-case, in bold or in contrasted colour to draw attention.

Example:“NO DIRT, JUST PRIDE” in large font, with “Dirt” in red and “Pride” in green over a landfill image.

By combining attention‑grabbing concision, stylistic embellishment and linguistic familiarity, billboard sanitation campaigns in Nigeria can effectively reach wider audiences, enhance comprehension and drive behaviour change. When messages are framed in Pidgin or local dialects and enriched with metaphors or repetition, they resonate more deeplywith populations that are less literate in Standard English.

3. Research Methodology

The data used for this study were drawn from a self- designed questionnaire on the impact of bill board inscriptions on environmental sanitation and health in Nigeria. The questionnaire was in four sections, each comprising 3 question items eliciting information on the level of the participants’ awareness, clarity of the messages, behavioural impacts and suggestions for improved environmental sanitation and health in our local communities and Nigeria as a whole. The questionnaire was administered on 124 participants randomly selected from Epe, Eredo,Agbowa- Ikosi and Ijebu-Ode comprising students, civil servants and the self -employed respectively.These participants are resident / indigent or schooling in Lagos or Ogun state,randomly selected using purposive random sampling technique. The rationale for the choice of these participants was that they were representation of Nigerian larger community who are resident in rural and urban communities where the subject of environmental sanitation is fully entrenched. The data were analyzed using Person Product Moment Correlation in testing the correlations among the major themes of this work which are: the awareness and perception level of the sampled participants, the message clarity and level of engagement of the bill boards and the level of behavioral impact of the messages on waste management’s habits of the participants.

4. Data Presentation and Analysis

The four sections of the questionnaire are presented below in their frequency distributions and percentages.

Table 1 Distribution of Respondents According to Age and Gender

Age			Gender
Group	Frequency	Percent	Group	Frequency	Percent
0-18	14	11.3	Male	25	20.2
18-30	105	84.7
31-50	3	2.4	Female	99	79.8
51 and above	2	1.6
Total	124	100	Total	124	100

 

Figure 1: A pie Chart showing the percentages of the Age and Gender Distributions of the Respondents

Table 1 and Figure 1 show the respondents distribution in relation to their age and gender demographic characteristics. Table 1 shows that 84.7% of the whole sample falls within the age range 18 to 30 years with female constituting the majority in this group. In addition, only 4% of the distributions are of the 31 years and above.

Table 2: Distributions of Respondents According to Occupation and Location

Occupation			Location
Group	Frequency	Percent	Group	Frequency	Percent
Higher Institution Students	108	87.1	Epe	54	43.5
Civil Servant	4	3.2	Eredo	19	15.3
Self Employed	4	3.2	Ijebu Ode	3	2.4
Others	8	6.5	Agbowa Ikosi	1	0.8
Total	124	100	Others	47	37.9
			Total	124	100

Table 2 displays the various levels of the respondents for this study according to their occupation and where they reside as at the time of this study when answering the questionnaire. The table shows that nearly 90% of respondents are higher institution students. Similarly, about(4) 3.2% are civil servants and 3.2% are self-employed, other (8) respondents totaling 6.5% does not belong to any of the categories listed. 

As regards the location distribution of the respondents, the table shows that about 40 % of the respondents live outside the main sampled locations of Epe and Ijebu-Ode whilealmost 4 out of every 10 respondents neither live in any of the Epe Local Government controlled places nor lived in Ijebu Ode axis of the sampled area.

 

Table 3: Respondents’ Frequency Distributions on Various Opinions on Waste Managements’ Bill Boards Advertisement

Items	Response Sets
1) How aware are you of billboards that promote environmental sanitation in your area?	Not Aware	Somewhat aware	Very aware			Total
	33 (26.2)	39 (31.5)	52 (41.9)			124
2) How effective do you believe these billboards are in raising awareness about environmental sanitation?	very ineffective	ineffective	neutral	effective	very effective	Total
	6 (4.8)	2 (1.6)	43 (34.7)	46 (37.1)	27 (21.8)	124
3) Do you think the messages on these billboards resonate with the local community?	Not sure	Yes	No			Total
	40 (32.3)	71 (57.3)	13 (10.5)			124
4) How clear are the messages convoyed on the billboards regarding environmental sanitation?	very ineffective	ineffective	neutral	effective	very effective	Total
	1 (0.8)	5 (4.0)	25 (20.2)	54 (43.5)	39 (31.5)	124
5) What type of content do you think is most engaging on these billboards?	visuals	slogans	statistics/facts	calls to action	curses	Total
	72 (58.1)	5 (4.0)	22 (17.7)	21 (16.9)	4 (3.2)	124
6) Have you ever felt compelled to take action after seeing a billboard related to environmental sanitation?	Yes	No				Total
	80 (64.5)	44 (35.5)				124
7) Have you changed any of your waste management habits because of information from billboards?	Yes	No				Total
	54 (43.5)	74 (56.5)				124
8) Do you discuss the messages from these billboards with your friends or family?	never	rarely	occasionally	frequently		Total
	16 (12.9)	53 (42.7)	36 (29.0)	19 (15.3)		124
9) What improvements would you suggest for billboard inscriptions related to environmental sanitation?	more local relevance	More Frequent updates	Better Visibility/ Design	Others		Total
	18 (14.5)	54 (43.5)	41(33.1)	11 (8.9)		124

 

Table 3 is a collection of various opinions of the respondents on various areas of waste managements’ bill board adverts. The varied items sought the respondent’s views on themes such as awareness and perception to message clarity and engagement. The table indicates respondents’ perceptions of the billboards’behavioural impact on the populace.It shows that only 41% of the respondents are clearly aware of billboards that promote environmental sanitation in their areas though another 31% are aware but not fully conscious of the presence of such billboards. As regards the level of effectiveness of the billboards in raising awareness about environmental sanitation, six (6 ) out of every ten (10) respondents believe that the bill boards are effective, three-quarter of the respondents opines that the messages are clear enough for understanding, while more than half of the sampled opinions think the messages on these billboards indicates resonate with the local community.

Visuals content is believed to be the most engaging content on these bill boards. This is attested to by more than 58% of the respondents. It is also worthy to note that the messages of the bill boards have caused a change of action positively in the lives of the sampled respondents as more than 50% of them have taken one action or the other towards changing their waste management habits and it is good to report that almost five (5) out of every ten (10) respondents share this positive impacts with the members of their family. Majority thus suggests more frequent updates of information as regards waste management tips should be put on the bill boards and the updates should be more visible and of good design.

 

Table: 4: Pearson Correlation

	Measures	1	2	3
1	Awareness and Perception	1
2	Message Clarity and Engagement	0.284**	1
3	Behavioral Impact	0.441**	0.316**	1

** Correlation is Significant at the 0.01 level (2 tailed)

Person Product Moment Correlation was used in testing the correlations among the major themes of this work which are: the awareness and perception level of the sampled participants, the message clarity and level of engagement of the bill boards, and the level of behavioral impact of the messages on the participants’ habits on waste management. Table 4 shows there is a moderately strong linear positive correlation between awareness and perception, and behavioral impact (r=0.441, p<0.01) and average linear positive correlation between the message clarity and behavioral impact (r=0.316, p<0.01). This indicates that higher awareness and perception of billboard messages can positively influence participants’ waste management behaviours. In addition, the behavioral impacts can also be increased by the level of clarity of the various messages inscribed on bill boards.

In addition, the table 4 shows that there is weak linear positive correlation between the level of participants’ level of awareness and the clarity and engagement of the messages on the bill boards. Althoughsignificant (r=0.284, p<0.01) awareness alone does not guarantee engagement. One can be aware of a bill board message and not have a clear understanding of the messages and thus lack ability to engage properly on such messages.

5. Discussion of Findings

Findings1: There are more young participants of less than 30 years than older participants in the study probably because the method of data collection was through Google form. Majority of them are higher institution students and are female by gender.

Findings 2: Visual Contents that are more visible with good designs should be frequently updated on the bill boards

Finding 3: There are positive correlations between clarity of messages on bill boards and the behavioral impact expected.

6. Recommendations

Most participants in the study are under 30, likely because data were collected via Google Forms, and the majority are female higher institution students. Billboards with visually appealing content and clear design should be updated frequently to maintain public engagement. Furthermore, the clarity of billboard messages is positively correlated with the expected behavioural impact on waste management practices, indicating that well- designed and understandable messages can influence public behavior effectively.

7. Conclusion

The use of language on billboard inscriptions plays a crucial role in raising awareness about environmental sanitation and health in Nigeria. A wellcrafted language (either English or local) ,educative and informative contents, culturally relevant symbols and imagery on the billboard contribute significantly in promoting pollution free environment and healthy living in any nation of the world.Thus, Nigerian citizens should be constantly awakened to the instructions on the billboards and act accordingly in order to make our environment a beautiful place to live.

 

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