The Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) has released the 2025 Subnational Ease of Doing Business Report, with Lagos State emerging as the top-performing state after scoring 85.6 per cent.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria, the ranking was made public on Sunday by the PEBEC Director-General, Mrs. Zahrah Mustapha-Audu. Kaduna State placed second with 65.1 per cent, while Oyo, the Federal Capital Territory, and Ogun completed the top five with scores of 62.7 per cent, 61.0 per cent, and 59.9 per cent, respectively.
Enugu and Plateau both scored 56.2 per cent to take sixth and seventh positions, followed by Ekiti (55.8 per cent), Kano (54.8 per cent), and Nasarawa (53.4 per cent), completing the top 10.
PEBEC, a federal agency focused on simplifying business operations through reforms and policy improvements, said the EoDB report provides a comprehensive, data-driven assessment of how the 36 states and the FCT are improving business competitiveness. The evaluation covered 16 indicators and 36 sub-metrics, including electricity supply, infrastructure, digital connectivity, land administration, taxation, trade logistics, justice delivery, investor support, and labour readiness.
Mustapha-Audu noted that the leading states distinguished themselves through consistent reform efforts, enhanced digital systems, and stable regulatory environments.
She added that the 2025 report outlines five priority interventions that states can implement immediately, including establishing investor aftercare mechanisms, strengthening MSME credit access, harmonising interstate trade regulations, upgrading commercial justice systems, and improving electricity supply for industrial clusters.
According to her, PEBEC will continue supporting states in adopting reforms, especially under the $750 million State Action on Business Enabling Reforms (SABER) programme.
The DG said the 2025 Subnational EoDB Report “provides a critical foundation for policy action, investment decisions, and long-term competitiveness across Nigeria.” The report is available for download on the PEBEC website.
NAN also reports that the council recently released its 2025 Business Facilitation Act Performance Report, assessing the performance of 69 priority MDAs between January and October. The report relies on compliance submissions, mystery shopping, website audits, analytics, and process verification.
Top-performing MDAs include the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (90.6 per cent), the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (89 per cent), the Nigeria Customs Service (86.6 per cent), the Nigerian Communications Commission (85.3 per cent), and the Nigerian Ports Authority (84.2 per cent).
Established in July 2016 and chaired by Vice President Kashim Shettima, PEBEC is mandated to remove bureaucratic and legislative barriers to doing business while improving the overall perception of Nigeria’s business environment.