Key takeaways:

• Economic activities are categorised into three sectors.
• The services sector is the largest employer of labour.
• The data indicates that Nigeria's economy is primarily service-based.
• The industry sector comprises of mining and quarrying, manufacturing, construction, and public utilities.

• With 120% and 118% inflation rates, respectively, the two top nations are experiencing economic meltdowns, making essentials like food and housing almost unattainable.
• With 57.5% inflation, Zimbabwe continues its battle against economic instability, making it the 4th highest in the world and the worst in Africa.
• The fact that several countries exceed the global average of 7.27% by 4x to 16x highlights the severe economic strain facing multiple regions.
• Countries with inflation above 30% risk prolonged economic instability as businesses struggle to survive and citizens face rising poverty levels.

• Treasury Bills have seen a sharp decline in their share of domestic debt service, dropping from 30.1% in 2017 to just 6.4% in 2024. This suggests a shift away from short-term debt instruments.
• Treasury Bonds, which peaked at 14.9% in 2022, also declined to just 5.6% in 2024.
• By 2021, over 80% of domestic debt service payments were already allocated to FGN Bonds, showing a consistent pattern of prioritisation. The trend has only intensified in subsequent years.
• The rising dominance of FGN Bonds means Nigeria is locking itself into long-term repayment obligations, potentially increasing the fiscal burden in the future.
• This trend underscores the need for careful debt management policies to prevent a future where long-term commitments become a burden rather than a stabilising factor. 🚨

• Lagos led Nigeria’s box office with ₦5.8 billion in revenue, generating more revenue than all other regions combined.
• The South-South emerged as the strongest market outside Lagos, contributing ₦2.1 billion, nearly 50% more than the South-West.
• Abuja outperformed all three northern zones combined, earning ₦852 million, which is nearly four times their total revenue.
• Cinema penetration in northern Nigeria remains weak, with the North-East contributing only ₦2.4 million—less than 0.05% of the national total, highlighting a significant gap in cinema infrastructure and audience engagement.

• Between 2010 and 2024 (a 15-year period), the federal government invested over ₦25.7 trillion in capital projects.
• The post-2020 era saw a dramatic rise in capital expenditure, growing from ₦1.61 trillion in 2020 to ₦5.15 trillion in 2024, indicating accelerated investments in infrastructure.
• The increase in expenditure after 2020 suggests the government prioritised economic recovery efforts, allocating more resources to capital projects post-pandemic.
• Nigeria recorded its highest-ever capital expenditure in 2023 (₦4.49 trillion) and 2024 (₦5.15 trillion), showing a more aggressive investment approach in recent years.
• 2014 recorded the lowest capital expenditure (₦0.59 trillion) in the 15-year span, possibly due to revenue shortfalls, oil price fluctuations, or policy shifts at the time.

• Since 2013, the Nigerian government has disbursed ₦3.4 trillion in pension and gratuity payments.
• Pension expenditure jumped from ₦107.4 billion in 2013 to ₦438.6 billion in 2023, a nearly four times increase, showing the rising cost of maintaining pension obligations.
• While pension spending grew gradually between 2013 and 2018, a significant spike began in 2019 (₦307.4 billion), showing a shift in pension allocations.
• The highest pension expenditure recorded so far was in 2023, surpassing all previous years.
• The Need for a Sustainable Pension System – With pension spending climbing yearly, ensuring a sustainable funding model will be crucial for future government budgets.

•  The three largest cinema chains in Nigeria grossed over ₦7.6 billion naira combined in 2024 from Anglophone West Africa
• EbonyLife Cinemas made the highest amount of any single cinema location
• Filmhouse Cinemas has maintained the highest box office revenue for seven years
• At ₦3.3 billion naira, Filmhouse's 2024 revenue is the highest ever recorded by a cinema chain in the region

• Nigeria alone holds 89% of all cinema locations and 92% of all screens in the region.
• Ghana is the second-largest market but has only seven locations and 18 screens, significantly trailing behind Nigeria.
• Sierra Leone has four cinema locations and eight screens, while Liberia has just one location with two screens, highlighting the limited cinema infrastructure in both countries.
• The overwhelming concentration of cinema infrastructure in Nigeria reflects its established film industry and audience demand.

• 9mobile lost the most customers to porting in 2024, with 44.7k subscribers switching to other networks.
• MTN, once the most affected by porting, now has the lowest losses at just 2.7k customers in 2024.
• Airtel and Globacom had minimal losses in 2024, with 4.2k and 3.8k customers leaving respectively.
• MTN previously saw massive porting losses, peaking at 125.5k in 2015, but has since improved drastically.
• Porting losses have declined across all networks over time, except for 9mobile, which has seen a recent spike.

• The predominant share of sub-Saharan Africa's workforce is engaged in agriculture.
• In 2022, over 50% of the workforce in sub-Saharan Africa was employed in the Agriculture sector.
• Employment levels in the Industry sector were significantly lower compared to Agriculture and Services.
• Approximately 37% of employees in sub-Saharan Africa were in the Service industry.

• Canada announced a reduction in international student approvals in 2024, citing housing and resource pressures.
• Global approvals dropped nearly 31% from 681.5k in 2023.
• Nigerian approvals dropped 36%, ranking among the highest declines. India (-39.7%) and Nepal (-48.8%) were also major declines.
• Canada plans to issue 437,000 study permits in 2025, 10% lower than 2024’s cap.
• The UK, US, and local universities may see more Nigerian applicants.

• Four of 2024's top-grossing movies in Nigeria were not among the top 15 globally, showing a local preference for some movies.
• The world's highest-grossing 2024 movie, Inside Out 2, underperformed in Nigeria
• Movie franchises and sequels dominated the list, as only two movies were neither a sequel nor part of a franchise.
• The top 15 foreign titles at the Nigerian box office grossed ₦3.95 billion, more than the top local title's ₦3.37 trillion.