Nigeria’s difficult reforms strengthen its investment outlook

Nigeria has risen seven places to 11th in RMB’s 2026/27 Where to Invest in Africa report, marking the largest movement in this year’s rankings and indicating that recent economic reforms are strengthening the country’s investment outlook.

The improvement follows a period of significant adjustment. Nigeria ranked 9th in 2024/25 before falling to 18th in 2025/26 as the economy absorbed the short-term impact of key reforms. Its rise to 11th points to improving stability, although structural challenges linger.

“Last year’s decline was the immediate reaction to necessary long-term reform. Nigeria’s improved position now reflects the view that the economy has been set on a more stable course. Good policy decisions are hard to make and implement, but they ultimately drive investment and economic growth,” says Isaah Mhlanga, Chief Economist at RMB.

Attractiveness today, durability tomorrow

The report highlights the importance of viewing Nigeria’s performance over time. While the latest ranking signals progress, it also reflects policy reforms, foreign-exchange market changes and statistical updates, including GDP and CPI rebasing.

RMB’s new Resilience and Vulnerability Matrix provides additional insight into the sustainability of investment opportunities. Beyond asking which markets are attractive today, it considers which are building opportunities that can endure pressure. Resilience refers to the policies, institutions and buffers that help an economy withstand and recover from shocks. Vulnerability captures structural exposure, such as export concentration, import dependence, climate risk and external financing needs.

Nigeria’s key advantage remains its scale, ranking first in population and third in GDP among the countries assessed. However, structural factors relating to public institutions, economic complexity and oil dependence continue to influence Nigeria’s long-term resilience profile. The report identifies macroeconomic stability as a relative strength, while strength of public institutions remains the country’s largest gap.

Turning reform into durable investment momentum

“Investment attractiveness is not only about current opportunities, but also about the ability to sustain progress through periods of volatility,” says Mhlanga.

The report concludes that Nigeria’s stronger ranking is an early indication that reforms are beginning to improve the investment trajectory. Sustaining this progress will depend on continued reform implementation, stronger public institutions, greater economic diversification and reduced structural vulnerabilities.

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Access the full 2026/27 RMB Where to Invest in Africa report for Nigeria’s complete rankings, the three-year comparison and the Resilience and Vulnerability Matrix findings.The 2026/27 edition is the third consecutive report to use the updated WTIIA model, providing a like-for-like view of 31 countries across three years.

About RMB Nigeria Limited

RMB Nigeria Limited, a member of the FirstRand Group, is a leading African Corporate and Investment Bank. RMB Nigeria provides clients with innovative, value-added solutions across advisory, funding, trading, corporate banking, and principal investing. For more information, please visit www.rmb.com.ng

About RMB

RMB is a leading African corporate and investment bank. It partners clients to deliver advisory, lending, trading, securities, corporate banking, private equity and investment solutions. A presence in London, New York, Beijing and Mumbai provides global clients with access to African markets. RMB has a deal footprint in 35 African countries and facilitates cross-border trade and investment on the continent. RMB represents the corporate and investment banking activities of FirstRand Limited.  For more information, visit www.rmb.co.za.