Lagos State Tops Nigeria’s 2025 Ease of Doing Business Ranking with 85.6% Score, Widens Gap Over Kaduna and Oyo

The Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) has officially released its 2025 Subnational Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) Report, confirming that Lagos State has maintained its position as the most competitive business environment in Nigeria. Lagos secured the top spot with an impressive 85.6% performance score, significantly widening the margin between itself and other states in the race for investor confidence and regulatory efficiency.

The report, released on Thursday, December 4, 2025, assessed all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory across 16 indicators and 36 sub-metrics, covering critical areas such as electricity reliability, land administration, taxation, digital connectivity, and commercial justice delivery. Following Lagos in the top five were Kaduna State (65.1%), Oyo State (62.7%), the Federal Capital Territory (61.0%), and Ogun State (59.9%).

The Director-General of PEBEC, Princess Zahrah Mustapha Audu, stated that the top-performing states distinguished themselves through consistent reform momentum, improved digital processes, and more predictable regulatory environments. She emphasized that the 2025 index reflects “hard administrative evidence, not political claims,” and directly informs state eligibility for federal incentives and global investment engagement.

However, the report issued a stark warning. Despite the success of the top ten states (which also included Enugu, Plateau, Ekiti, Kano, and Nasarawa), PEBEC cautioned that most subnationals still suffer from gaps, including a lack of investor aftercare systems and industrial-level power stability. The Council urged governors to prioritize five key interventions, including overhauling commercial justice processes and improving power for industrial clusters, to prevent Nigerian businesses from moving to more stable regional economies.