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Political centralization index in Nigeria

Nigeria: Political centralization index was 0.49 in 2025. ▼ Falling

Latest (2025)
0.49
Change on year
up 2.3%
World rank
72nd
of 176 countries
All-time high
0.833
in 1914
All-time low
0.275
in 2014
Years of data
112
1914–2025

Political centralization index in Nigeria, 1914–2025

0.20.40.60.8191419692025

Source: Our World in Data.

Analysis

In 2025, political centralization index in Nigeria stood at 0.49.

The figure is up 2.3% on the previous year and up 69.6% over ten years.

Over the whole period, political centralization index in Nigeria peaked at 0.833 in 1914 and was at its lowest, 0.275, in 2014.

That places Nigeria 72nd out of 176 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 112 years of available data.

Political centralization index in Nigeria, year by year

Year Value Change
1914 0.833 —
1915 0.833 +0.0%
1916 0.833 +0.0%
1917 0.833 +0.0%
1918 0.833 +0.0%
1919 0.833 +0.0%
1920 0.833 +0.0%
1921 0.833 +0.0%
1922 0.833 +0.0%
1923 0.765 -8.2%
1924 0.765 +0.0%
1925 0.765 +0.0%
1926 0.765 +0.0%
1927 0.765 +0.0%
1928 0.765 +0.0%
1929 0.765 +0.0%
1930 0.765 +0.0%
1931 0.765 +0.0%
1932 0.765 +0.0%
1933 0.765 +0.0%
1934 0.765 +0.0%
1935 0.765 +0.0%
1936 0.765 +0.0%
1937 0.765 +0.0%
1938 0.765 +0.0%
1939 0.765 +0.0%
1940 0.765 +0.0%
1941 0.765 +0.0%
1942 0.765 +0.0%
1943 0.765 +0.0%
1944 0.765 +0.0%
1945 0.765 +0.0%
1946 0.765 +0.0%
1947 0.765 +0.0%
1948 0.765 +0.0%
1949 0.765 +0.0%
1950 0.765 +0.0%
1951 0.765 +0.0%
1952 0.765 +0.0%
1953 0.765 +0.0%
1954 0.759 -0.8%
1955 0.759 +0.0%
1956 0.759 +0.0%
1957 0.759 +0.0%
1958 0.759 +0.0%
1959 0.67 -11.7%
1960 0.544 -18.8%
1961 0.544 +0.0%
1962 0.544 +0.0%
1963 0.544 +0.0%
1964 0.582 +7.0%
1965 0.582 +0.0%
1966 0.545 -6.4%
1967 0.696 +27.7%
1968 0.696 +0.0%
1969 0.696 +0.0%
1970 0.696 +0.0%
1971 0.696 +0.0%
1972 0.696 +0.0%
1973 0.696 +0.0%
1974 0.696 +0.0%
1975 0.696 +0.0%
1976 0.696 +0.0%
1977 0.696 +0.0%
1978 0.696 +0.0%
1979 0.694 -0.3%
1980 0.573 -17.4%
1981 0.573 +0.0%
1982 0.573 +0.0%
1983 0.569 -0.7%
1984 0.71 +24.8%
1985 0.71 +0.0%
1986 0.71 +0.0%
1987 0.71 +0.0%
1988 0.71 +0.0%
1989 0.71 +0.0%
1990 0.71 +0.0%
1991 0.71 +0.0%
1992 0.729 +2.7%
1993 0.627 -14.0%
1994 0.627 +0.0%
1995 0.627 +0.0%
1996 0.627 +0.0%
1997 0.627 +0.0%
1998 0.627 +0.0%
1999 0.547 -12.8%
2000 0.408 -25.4%
2001 0.408 +0.0%
2002 0.408 +0.0%
2003 0.408 +0.0%
2004 0.408 +0.0%
2005 0.408 +0.0%
2006 0.408 +0.0%
2007 0.378 -7.4%
2008 0.364 -3.7%
2009 0.364 +0.0%
2010 0.332 -8.8%
2011 0.334 +0.6%
2012 0.326 -2.4%
2013 0.278 -14.7%
2014 0.275 -1.1%
2015 0.289 +5.1%
2016 0.34 +17.6%
2017 0.343 +0.9%
2018 0.352 +2.6%
2019 0.355 +0.9%
2020 0.366 +3.1%
2021 0.384 +4.9%
2022 0.426 +10.9%
2023 0.478 +12.2%
2024 0.479 +0.2%
2025 0.49 +2.3%

Nigeria compared with similar countries

  • Nigeria's 0.49 is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 0.5475, 89% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
  • Nigeria's 0.49 is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.683, 72% of the median. (48 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1910s 0.833 0.833 0.833 6
1920s 0.7854 0.765 0.833 10
1930s 0.765 0.765 0.765 10
1940s 0.765 0.765 0.765 10
1950s 0.7525 0.67 0.765 10
1960s 0.5973 0.544 0.696 10
1970s 0.6958 0.694 0.696 10
1980s 0.6548 0.569 0.71 10
1990s 0.6458 0.547 0.729 10
2000s 0.3962 0.364 0.408 10
2010s 0.3224 0.275 0.355 10
2020s 0.4372 0.366 0.49 6

Countries ranked near Nigeria

  1. 69 Ukraine 0.531 compare
  2. 70 Mozambique 0.523 compare
  3. 71 Lebanon 0.495 compare
  4. 73 Pakistan 0.471 compare
  5. 74 North Macedonia 0.469 compare
  6. 75 Georgia 0.467 compare

See the full ranking of 176 places →

More reference data data for Nigeria

All data for Nigeria →

Frequently asked questions

What is political centralization index in Nigeria?
Political centralization index in Nigeria was 0.49 in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
What is the highest political centralization index recorded in Nigeria?
The highest recorded value was 0.833 in 1914.
What is the lowest political centralization index recorded in Nigeria?
The lowest recorded value was 0.275 in 2014.
How does Nigeria rank for political centralization index?
Nigeria ranks 72nd out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
Is political centralization index rising or falling in Nigeria?
Over the last ten years it is up 69.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Nigeria data come from?
The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Political centralization index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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CSV · JSON — 112 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

Relationships involving this indicator

Comparisons with other indicators across countries. Each was re-measured with population and national income held constant, so a relationship that only reflected country size is not listed here.

All correlations →

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Political centralization index in Nigeria. Statizoid, drawing on Our World in Data. Retrieved 14 November 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/political-centralization-index/nigeria/

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About this data

Indicator
Political centralization index
Source
Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
176 places, 29,802 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed