Abuja, Nigeria – Lagos State has been ranked as the best sub‑national entity for ease of doing business in Nigeria, according to a new national report launched at the Reform and Diplomatic Roundtable 2026. The assessment places Lagos ahead of Kaduna, Oyo, the Federal Capital Territory, Ogun, Enugu, Plateau, Ekiti, Kano, and Nasarawa in the state‑level rankings.
Okay News reports that the study, delivered by the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council with UK International Development and Nigeria’s Economic Stability and Transformation Programme, measures how well state governments remove local bottlenecks for businesses. It emphasises that reform must happen at the state level, where most firms operate, to support Nigeria’s 39 million micro, small, and medium‑sized enterprises (MSMEs).
Lagos topped the list due to its relatively strong regulatory environment, infrastructure, and institutional transparency. The state scored well on electricity access, land administration, commercial courts, and contract enforcement, as well as on market access, a skilled workforce, and transport links such as airports and rail. However, the report flags issues like touting and loitering around key business and logistics hubs, weak investor aftercare systems, and patchy digital connectivity outside major urban areas.
The assessment used 16 core indicators, ranging from electricity and infrastructure to digital connectivity, land administration, justice delivery, taxation, trade logistics, investor support, crisis resilience, and workforce development. Each of these was broken down into 36 operational sub‑indicators tied to administrative data, to capture how reforms translate into actual service quality on the ground.
Across the six geopolitical zones, South‑West states dominate the top 10, with four entries, while North‑Central has three and North‑West two. The South‑East is represented by Enugu State, which ranks sixth thanks to good digital connectivity, electricity access, workforce development, and social infrastructure, though it still faces hurdles in investor aftercare and access to credit. No state from the North‑East or South‑South made the top 10.
The report also highlights that opaque company‑registration processes and slow timelines at the Corporate Affairs Commission discourage many MSMEs from formalising. To fix this, it outlines 10 strategic priorities: digitising land administration, improving access to credit, expanding commercial and small‑claims courts, strengthening alternative dispute resolution, establishing investor aftercare units, removing interstate trade barriers, upgrading logistics infrastructure, boosting digital connectivity, enforcing right‑of‑way rules, implementing electricity‑sector reforms, creating one‑stop investment centres, promoting alternative energy in transport, and building effective grievance‑redress mechanisms.
