Academic IELTS-performing countries: Nigeria ranked joint fifth among the top countries in 2022
Nigerian academic IELTS test takers scored an average of 6.7 out of 9 in 2022, placing the country joint 5th globally with Ghana, Hong Kong, and Indonesia. Spanish academic IELTS test takers topped the list with an overall score of 7.1.
In 2024, the top ten universities in Nigeria graduated 3,047 first-class students. Seventeen per cent of private university students in Nigeria earned first-class degrees, compared to 3% in federal/state universities.
The University of Benin convocated the most first-class students (385), while the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB) had the least, with 122.
Covenant University had the highest proportion, with one in five students graduating with a first class.
Ogun State is the top location for private universities, with 16 universities, while the top eight states collectively account for 50% of Nigeria's 149 private universities. Bauchi and Yobe are the only states with no private universities.
As of 2024, 149 private universities are accredited by the National Universities Commission. Southern Nigeria houses 62%, with the South West leading at 47 universities, while the North East has the fewest, with just 5 (3%).
Bayelsa, Gombe, and Katsina States have the fewest accredited universities — five each — of the 274 in Nigeria in 2024. Ogun leads with 19, followed closely by Abuja (17) and Delta (15).
Nomadic primary school enrolment in Nigeria remains most prevalent in the North West, with over 503,000 children enroled in 2021, significantly higher than any other region. Enrolment numbers have shown gradual improvement across most regions.
Nearly one in two accredited universities in Nigeria is located in the South West or North Central. The South West has the highest number of private and federal universities, with a total of 71 universities, while the North East has the fewest, with 21 universities.
