Nigeria places 63 in global startup ecosystem ranking and 3 in Africa as Lagos gains first spot in Africa

Nigeria has increased significantly, gaining 5 spots to rank 63rd on the global startup ecosystem. It is the highest ranking country in West Africa and the 3rd highest ranking country in Africa, after South Africa (number 48) and Kenya (number 61), according to the latest ranking by StartupBlink

In the recently released Global Startup Ecosystem Index Report 2021,  Lagos, Nigeria’s most populous city has surpassed Nairobi and is now the highest ranking startup ecosystem city in Africa, gaining 5 spots to 122nd. Lagos is also ranked in the 50 cities for E-commerce & Retail Technology and in the global top 100 for both Transportation Technology and Education Technology startup ecosystem.

Ibadan saw a massive increase in the global top startup ecosystem ranking, jumping 601 spots to 353rd globally and 2nd in Nigeria, surpassing the Nigerian capital of Abuja. Abuja which ranks 3rd nationally, fell 12 spots to 466th, while Port Harcourt decreased by 6 spots to 906th.

The newest Nigerian city in the global top startup ecosystem rankings is Enugu which ranks number 978th globally and 5th in Nigeria. Benin City has increased 9 spots to 979th, while Kano jumped 14 spots to 981st.

In total, Nigeria has 7 cities in the global top 1000 and continues to have the highest number of ranked cities of any African nation.

Startup Ecosystem Overview

With a massive consumer market and more than 500 active startups, Nigeria is one of the largest startup ecosystems in Africa.

The country has even nurtured a unicorn called Jumia, an online shop for electronics, phones, and fashion.Nevertheless, Nigeria faces some major challenges, such as a lack of financing options and even a lack of broadband internet infrastructure. Government entrepreneurship programs are present but need to be developed, as does legislation and public sector support.

Notable Startups and Ecosystem Champions

Flutterwave. -Flutterwave is a fintech company providing a payment infrastructure for global merchants and payment service providers across the African continent.

VerifyMe. – VerifyMe Nigeria is an ID verification and KYC technology company. Mono – Mono is enabling access to customers’ data in Africa.

You can download and read the full report here