However, Lagos is still the most prominent African city on the list and Nigeria’s single representative in the global top 100. 

The commercial hub scored 11.226 on the Index and recorded annual ecosystem growth of +14.7%, healthy growth by many measures, yet not enough to stop the slide in rank. 

At national level, Nigeria now sits 66th globally; the country recorded $176.4m in startup funding in 2024, has two unicorns, and counts 57 Y Combinator startups, but national ecosystem growth is +5.4%, and Nigeria slipped two places overall. 

Fintech is still the engine. The country “tops Africa’s unicorn charts” and the report reveals names you already know: Moniepoint and Flutterwave, both listed as unicorns and flagged among Lagos’ notable ecosystem champions (SB Scores: Moniepoint 669; Flutterwave 640). Nonetheless, the Index shows fintech’s success is concentrated: Lagos accounts for the vast majority of Nigeria’s startup growth. 

In simple terms, Lagos tops other cities across Nigeria. StartupBlink finds Lagos’s ecosystem is 11.8 times larger than Abuja’s, illustrating how national performance hinges on one city.

Abuja did, however, post extraordinary growth this cycle, climbing into the global top 400 at 399th with annual growth above 50%, the only Nigerian city to record a global climb in 2025. 

Other regional cities show mixed fortunes as Ibadan, Enugu, Port Harcourt and a newly listed Ilorin appear in the top 1,000 but most recorded declines. 

There is momentum — and there are gaps. Lagos benefits from a dense support network: Lagos Angel Network, Growth Capital Fund, Ventures Platform and Greenhouse Capital all play visible roles, while non-profits such as FATE Foundation provide training and mentoring. 

The federal architecture has started to respond: the Nigerian Startup Act, a National Council for Digital Innovation and Entrepreneurship, and a Startup Investment Seed Fund are now on the books. The government has also struck a public-private arrangement with JICA to seed a new fund. These steps matter; they show policy finally following promise. 

Infrastructure and capital remain the choke points. The report flags a shortage of financing options, low purchasing power, and a practical disconnect between Lagos and other local ecosystems. 

It notes that Nigeria’s internet quality has improved, Starlink came in during 2023, and that NigComSat’s 2024 accelerator has begun to seed activity in space and satellite technologies (20 startups were selected for intensive spacetech mentorship). Still, the broader infrastructure deficit and limited local capital markets hold back scaling. 

What this means for founders and investors

Lagos is still the gateway. If you are scaling a fintech or consumer startup with innovation across West Africa, Lagos offers the customers, talent and networks you need. 

But I’d caution founders to plan for friction; payments, purchasing power limitations and uneven support outside Lagos are real risks. The Index suggests diversification of hubs inside Nigeria must be a priority if the country wants comprehensive, resilient growth. 

A few immediate implications for policymakers and ecosystem builders (drawn from the report):

• Invest in road-and-digital infrastructure outside Lagos to reduce the games-of chance that currently shape who succeeds. 
• Scale financing instruments that target growth (not just seed), and encourage closer ties between Lagos capital and provincial startups.
• Sustain public-private programmes (like the JICA fund and NigComSat accelerator) that move beyond pilot stage into long-term commitments.

To close, the StartupBlink Index 2025 shows that Lagos is Africa’s headline startup ecosystem and Nigeria’s growth engine. However, the nation’s overall ranking and the concentration of success in one city expose strategic fragilities. 

If investors leverage Lagos as a launchpad, and aggressively invest in the next tier of cities, Nigerian entrepreneurship becomes broad, durable and not just Lagos-dependent.

The recently released StartupBlink Global Startup Ecosystem Index for 2023 sheds light on Nigeria’s dynamic startup landscape, with Lagos leading, presenting a mix of challenges and notable achievements.

Lagos: The Pinnacle of Nigerian Entrepreneurship

Lagos continues to be the standout city in Nigeria, retaining its status as the only African city within the global top 100. 

Despite a minor dip, sliding one spot to 82nd globally, Lagos showcases impressive performance, particularly in the Fintech sector, where it ranks 38th globally. Furthermore, the city expanded its lead, with a substantial 386.1% score gap over the second-ranked city, Accra, in Western Africa.

In a surprising turn, Nigeria witnessed a decrease in its overall global ranking, dropping three spots to 64th globally. Despite this setback, Lagos, Abuja, Enugu, and Port Harcourt have made their mark on the global stage, with the latter two cities experiencing remarkable triple-digit jumps in the rankings. With Enugu and Port Harcourt joining the ranks of globally recognized cities, Nigeria now boasts five cities in the top 1,000.

Nigeria’s Startup Ecosystem: Challenges and Opportunities

While Nigeria’s startup ecosystem is on the rise, it faces significant challenges, including limited financing options, low purchasing power, and a notable disconnect between Lagos and other cities. These hurdles pose a critical challenge for a country of Nigeria’s size and potential. 

However, the Nigerian government and various support organizations, such as the Lagos Angel Network, Growth Capital Fund, and Ventures Platform, are actively working to bridge these gaps. Additionally, initiatives like the Nigerian Startup Act aim to provide a legal framework for the development and operations of startups, fostering a nurturing environment for entrepreneurial growth.

Notable Startups and Champions: Driving Innovation

Amidst the challenges, Nigerian startups continue to thrive, contributing significantly to the nation’s entrepreneurial landscape. Notable startups like Flutterwave, a fintech unicorn, OPay, an innovative financial services provider, TradeDepot, a B2B ecommerce platform, and Jumia Group, a consumer goods ecommerce retail platform, exemplify Nigeria’s innovation prowess. These startups, among others, serve as champions of the Nigerian startup ecosystem, showcasing the country’s potential on the global stage.

Nigeria’s startup journey in 2023 is a tale of resilience, innovation, and determination. While challenges persist, the entrepreneurial spirit remains unwavering. As the government, support organizations, and startups collaborate to overcome obstacles, Nigeria’s startup landscape continues to evolve, promising a future where the nation stands tall as a hub of innovation in Africa. With each success story and innovative solution, Nigeria moves closer to realizing its full potential and solidifying its position as a global startup powerhouse.

This comprehensive report sheds light on the intricate dynamics of the global startup landscape, providing valuable insights into the entrepreneurial trends shaping economies across the world. 

Country Ranking Insights: A Global Perspective

At the global level, the United States maintains its undisputed reign, holding the top spot for yet another year. With a substantial lead, nearly four times that of the United Kingdom at second place, the U.S. continues to dominate the startup ecosystem. 

Although the total score gap between the U.S. and the UK has been gradually narrowing, this year saw the gap remaining relatively stable. Interestingly, the UK’s ability to attract foreign talent might be influenced by the implications of Brexit, a factor reflected in the narrowing score gap.

Israel stands strong as the third-ranked country globally, trailing closely behind the UK. Despite facing challenges related to judicial reforms, Israel maintains its position as a key player in the global startup arena. In the Middle East and Africa, Israel remains a powerhouse, overshadowing other regional contenders by a significant margin.

Africa and the Middle East: A Closer Look

In the Africa and Middle East region, the startup landscape is witnessing positive growth, evident from the increase in the number of cities representing the region. Israel, with its robust startup ecosystem, continues to lead the region, securing the third spot globally. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) follows as the second-strongest player in the region, although there is a considerable gap between Israel and the UAE’s startup scenes.

Promisingly, African nations like Senegal and Mauritius have made remarkable strides, marking substantial improvements globally. Lagos, a vibrant city in Nigeria, retains its status as the only African city in the global top 100. However, South Africa’s decline this year highlights the challenges faced by African startups, with no representation among the top 50 countries.

Israel, the UAE, and South Africa have managed to position more than one city in the top regional 20. Israel, in particular, boasts an impressive five cities in the regional top 20, showcasing the depth of its startup ecosystem. Notably, Mauritius and Senegal have climbed 10 spots each in the global rankings, demonstrating their growing entrepreneurial potential on the global stage. Uganda’s return to the top 100, ranking 96th globally, after a one-year absence, is a positive indicator of the region’s resilience and innovation.

Conclusion: Nurturing Startup Growth in Africa and the Middle East

As we analyze StartupBlink’s Global Startup Ecosystem Index for 2023, it is evident that Africa and the Middle East are witnessing notable advancements in their startup ecosystems. While challenges persist, the region’s entrepreneurial spirit and innovation are driving positive changes.

Countries like Israel, the UAE, Senegal, and Mauritius are at the forefront of this transformation, showcasing the immense potential for startup growth. Continued support, investment, and collaborative efforts are essential to nurturing the burgeoning startup scenes in these regions, paving the way for a vibrant and sustainable entrepreneurial future.

With Lagos developing to become one of the largest startup hubs in the whole of Africa, and unicorns springing from the states, it’s high time more startup founders recognize the need to build in other states while the governments make it convenient enough for their growth. 

“Nigeria’s climb is the result of Lagos’ success. Lagos has seen a massive jump of 41 places to 81st globally. It is the first African city to break into the global top 100, a milestone that should be celebrated (we should mention that Lagos already ranked 99th in 2019 but lost this position in 2020). This shows the immense potential of the ecosystem in Lagos.” StartupBlink report 2022.

According to the report, the only Nigerian cities that made it to the top 1000 were 3, including Lagos, Abuja and Ibadan. Among these 3, only Lagos had an acceleration, others had a deceleration, with the rest that were in the list for the previous years dropping out. “Several other Nigerian seed ecosystems dropped out of the rankings this year.”

“Consequently, the total number of Nigerian cities in the global top 1000 fell from 7 to 3, signaling some cities with seed ecosystems are losing momentum even as Lagos witnesses very high growth, and suggesting that Nigerian talent may be moving to Lagos at the expense of other cities,” the StartupBlink report further stated.

Out of 7 Nigerian cities on the list in previous years, the 3 that held fast but could go off if efforts are not heightened are described below:

Lagos 

Out of the 1000 cities, Lagos was ranked 81. The city went up 41 spots compared to last year, with total score of 8.378 and overperforming industry being foodtech.

Abuja

Abuja had a global rank of 473, a 7 spot drop compared to the previous year and a total score of 0.807. Abuja now holds the second position which was initially held by Ibadan.

Ibadan 

Ibadan dropped 308 spots, obtaining a global ranking of 661 and a total score of 0.424.

Some challenges mentioned in the report could be reasons why cities are not doing well in this aspect as the impact is higher in some than others. These challenges include:

• Shortage of financing options 
• Poor broadband internet infrastructure

For investment levels to increase as the report suggested, and despite the government doing its part to address the infrastructure deficit to enable its talented entrepreneurs achieve success faster, there must be targeted and sustainable inclusion among the various cities, strengthening zeal among these startups.

Analysing the growth rate of startups across 1,000 cities and 100 countries, the StartupBlink Global Startup Ecosystem 2022 was recently released in partnership with data sources like Crunchbase, SEMrush, Statista, as well as Meetup, and also working with approximately 100 Ecosystem partners, most of which are government agencies.

Basing its algorithm on objective, quantifiable data that can be comparatively measured across regions, countries, and cities, StartupBlink focused on startups leveraging technology to build scalable innovative solutions.

With several countries dropping or rising in rank compared to previous years, countries like the United States, United Kingdom, Israel and Canada remained the first four respectively from 2020 till now.

Africa

In Africa, the only country among the top 50 had a decline by one spot compared to last year. This was South Africa which came up as 49th in the ranking. Some other African countries among the top 100 were Kenya; ranked 62 and Ghana; ranked 82, both declining by one spot, Egypt went five spots higher than last year, ranking 65 and Senegal increased 13 spots to rank 92.

Nigeria

Following South Africa was Nigeria, ranking 61 and climbing the ladder by two spots compared to last year. The country is the highest-ranking country in West Africa, 2nd highest in Africa and 4th in the Middle East and Africa region where Israel, United Arab Emirates and South Africa ranked 1st, 2nd and 3rd respectively. This increase was a result of the tremendous startup growth in one of the country’s cities — Lagos State.

The StartupBlink report described this as “one of the most celebrated and interesting jumps”. For the first time, Lagos is the first African city to ever reach the global top 100; it climbed 41 spots to rank 81. 

“Lagos was ranked 24th globally in the Foodtech industry and 43rd in eCommerce & Retail. Lagos’ achievement in Foodtech should be celebrated because Lagos is the only African city to reach the global top 30 for any of the 11 industries,” the report stated.

Although ranked as the 2nd in Nigeria, Abuja decreased by 7 spots to rank 473rd among the 1,000 cities and Ibadan lost 308 spots to rank 661st.

“Several other Nigerian seed ecosystems dropped out of the rankings this year. Consequently, the total number of Nigerian cities in the global top 1,000 fell from 7 to 3, signaling some cities with seed ecosystems are losing momentum even as Lagos witnesses very high growth, and suggesting that Nigerian talent may be moving to Lagos at the expense of other cities. South Africa has displaced Nigeria as the country in Africa with the highest number of ranked cities in the top 1000.”

Giving its recommendation for Nigeria to do better, the report emphasized that policymakers in Nigeria need to strengthen other ecosystems, given the size of the country, and push one more ecosystem towards the top 200. The government has to do its part in addressing the infrastructure deficit so that talented entrepreneurs can achieve success faster.

Ecosystem Funding by Region

Over half of the global startup funding is received by North American startups — 52.3%. This is followed by startups in the Asia Pacific — 24.0%, Europe — 18.3%, Latin America & the Caribbean — 2.9%, as well as the Middle East & Africa — 2.5%.

The report further noted that 69% of the funding in the Middle East & Africa goes to Israeli startups, similar to the Asia Pacific region where most of the funding goes to startups in China. These are the strong players in both regions while startups in other countries receive substantially less funding.