Lagos tops Nigeria’s ease of doing business ranking

A typical Lagos Market. File photo

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The Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council has released the 2025 Subnational Ease of Doing Business Report, with Lagos emerging as the best-performing state, scoring 85.6 per cent.

As reported by the News Agency of Nigeria on Sunday, the report, released by the Director-General of PEBEC, Mrs Zahrah Mustapha-Audu, placed Kaduna in second position with 65.1 per cent.

Oyo, the FCT and Ogun rounded off the top five with scores of 62.7 per cent, 61.0 per cent and 59.9 per cent, respectively.

Others include Enugu (56.2 per cent) in sixth position, followed by Plateau (56.2 per cent), Ekiti (55.8 per cent), Kano (54.8 per cent) and Nasarawa (53.4 per cent), completing the top 10 states.

PEBEC is a federal government agency dedicated to simplifying business operations in Nigeria through reforms and policy enhancements.

The EoDB report is a comprehensive, data-driven assessment of how Nigeria’s 36 states and the FCT are shaping business competitiveness through regulation, infrastructure, and administrative efficiency.

The report assesses performance across 16 indicators and 36 sub-metrics covering electricity, infrastructure, digital connectivity, land administration, taxation, trade logistics, justice delivery, investor support, and skilled labour readiness.

According to the DG, the leading states distinguished themselves through consistent reform momentum, improved digital processes and more predictable regulatory environments.

“The 2025 report also highlights five priority interventions states can implement immediately.

“These include establishing investor aftercare systems, strengthening MSME credit enablement, harmonising interstate trade rules, upgrading commercial justice processes and improving power reliability for industrial clusters,” she said.

According to her, PEBEC will continue to support state-led reform adoption, particularly under the $750 million State Action on Business Enabling Reforms programme.

She added that the 2025 Subnational EoDB Report “provides a critical foundation for policy action, investment decisions and long-term competitiveness across Nigeria.”

The DG said the Subnational Ease of Doing Business Report is available for download at www.pebec.gov.ng/reports.

NAN reports that PEBEC earlier released its 2025 Business Facilitation Act Performance Report, covering MDAs’ performance from January to October.

The performance report is part of the council’s effort to track and measure the compliance of Federal Government MDAs with the BFA’s requirements on promoting transparency and efficiency in government-delivered services to the business community.

The report presents a data-driven assessment of 69 priority MDAs, drawing on monthly compliance submissions, independent mystery shopping, website audits, ReportGov analytics, and targeted process-verification exercises.

According to the report, the top five performing MDAs include the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, with a 90.6 per cent score, followed by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency at 89 per cent.

The Nigeria Customs Service ranked third with 86.6 per cent, while the Nigerian Communications Commission and Nigerian Ports Authority secured fourth and fifth positions, scoring 85.3 per cent and 84.2 per cent, respectively.

NAN also reports that PEBEC, currently chaired by Vice President Kashim Shettima, was established in July 2016 by the Federal Government to oversee Nigeria’s business environment interventions.

It has the dual mandate of removing bureaucratic and legislative constraints to doing business and improving the perception of the ease of doing business in Nigeria.

(NAN)

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