Rule of Law - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5) in Nigeria
Nigeria: Rule of Law - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5) was -0.9515 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Rule of Law - Governance estimate in Nigeria, 1996–2025
Source: The Worldwide Governance Indicators: Revised Methodology for Measuring Governance Using Perception Data., World Bank Group (WBG). Measured in approx. -2.5 to +2.5.
Analysis
In 2025, rule of law - governance estimate in Nigeria stood at -0.9515 approx. -2.5 to +2.5.
That represents a change of up 4.8% on the previous year and up 4.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rule of law - governance estimate in Nigeria peaked at -0.7994 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 2017 and was at its lowest, -1.59 approx. -2.5 to +2.5, in 2002.
Nigeria ranks 162nd of 208 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 27 years of available data.
Rule of Law - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5) in Nigeria, year by year
| Year | approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | -1.26 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | — |
| 1998 | -1.25 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -0.2% |
| 2000 | -1.29 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +2.8% |
| 2002 | -1.59 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +23.2% |
| 2003 | -1.51 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -4.7% |
| 2004 | -1.3 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -14.0% |
| 2005 | -1.32 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +1.3% |
| 2006 | -1.14 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -13.2% |
| 2007 | -1.08 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -6.0% |
| 2008 | -1.04 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -3.5% |
| 2009 | -1.04 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +0.2% |
| 2010 | -1.15 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +10.7% |
| 2011 | -1.1 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -4.5% |
| 2012 | -1.12 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +2.2% |
| 2013 | -1.22 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +8.4% |
| 2014 | -1.17 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -3.8% |
| 2015 | -0.9989 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -14.7% |
| 2016 | -0.9015 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -9.7% |
| 2017 | -0.7994 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -11.3% |
| 2018 | -0.8241 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +3.1% |
| 2019 | -0.8261 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +0.2% |
| 2020 | -0.8475 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +2.6% |
| 2021 | -0.9284 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +9.6% |
| 2022 | -1.02 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +9.4% |
| 2023 | -0.9805 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -3.5% |
| 2024 | -0.9989 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | +1.9% |
| 2025 | -0.9515 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -4.8% |
Nigeria compared with similar countries
- Nigeria's -0.9515 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is -0.6884 approx. -2.5 to +2.5, 1.4× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Nigeria's -0.9515 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is -0.8846 approx. -2.5 to +2.5, 1.1× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | -1.25 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -1.26 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -1.25 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | 2 |
| 2000s | -1.26 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -1.59 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -1.04 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | 9 |
| 2010s | -1.01 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -1.22 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -0.7994 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | 10 |
| 2020s | -0.9538 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -1.02 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | -0.8475 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Nigeria
- 159 Kyrgyzstan -0.9314 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
- 160 Ethiopia -0.9379 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
- 161 Madagascar -0.9455 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
- 163 Comoros -0.9551 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
- 164 Palestine -0.9613 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
- 165 Djibouti -1.02 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
More reference data data for Nigeria
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.77 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 19.51 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 27 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 2.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 27 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 5.94 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 5.8 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 81.9 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 121.16 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 14.27 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is rule of law - governance estimate in Nigeria?
- Rule of law - governance estimate in Nigeria was -0.9515 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 2025, according to The Worldwide Governance Indicators: Revised Methodology for Measuring Governance Using Perception Data., World Bank Group (WBG).
- What is the highest rule of law - governance estimate recorded in Nigeria?
- The highest recorded value was -0.7994 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 2017.
- What is the lowest rule of law - governance estimate recorded in Nigeria?
- The lowest recorded value was -1.59 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 2002.
- How does Nigeria rank for rule of law - governance estimate?
- Nigeria ranks 162nd out of 208 countries with data for 2025.
- Is rule of law - governance estimate rising or falling in Nigeria?
- Over the last ten years it is up 4.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Nigeria data come from?
- The figures come from The Worldwide Governance Indicators: Revised Methodology for Measuring Governance Using Perception Data., World Bank Group (WBG), published as part of Rule of Law - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Rule of Law (RL) captures perceptions of the extent to which agents respect and follow the rules of society, including contract enforcement, property rights, the police, courts, and the likelihood of crime and violence. Governance estimate from the aggregation model, in units of a standard normal distribution, i.e. ranging from approximately -2.5 to 2.5. Larger values correspond to better governance. The (country-series-time) metadata include the (a) number of sources, and (b) standard error. The number of sources indicates the number of underlying data sources on which the governance estimate is based. The standard error indicates the precision of the governance estimate. Larger values indicate less precise estimates. A 90% confidence interval for the governance estimate is given by the estimate +/- 1.64 times the standard error.