The International Institute for Management Development (IMD) world competitiveness ranking 2026 has Nigeria as the highest-performing economy among top African countries and 55th globally.
The IMD ranking, which covered 70 countries, evaluates economies across four broad pillars: economic performance, government efficiency, business efficiency, and infrastructure.
The economic performance pillar assesses factors such as domestic economic activity, international trade and investment, employment, and prices.
Analysis of the IMD data indicated that Nigeria achieved a score of 45.2 points, ranking 55th worldwide.
This puts Nigeria ahead of five other African countries that were assessed based on their economic performance.
According to the IMD, South Africa achieved the second-highest ranking in the Africa group, with a score of 36.27, placing 64th worldwide, while Ghana secured the third position with 34.6 points and a global ranking of 65th.
Kenya secured the fourth position on the continent with a score of 33.19, ranking 66th overall, while Namibia followed with a score of 22.3, placing 68th.
Botswana also achieved a score of 18.25, securing the 69th position.
The assessment revealed a 26.95-point disparity between Nigeria, which holds the highest economic ranking among its African peers, and Botswana, the lowest-ranked African nation, according to the IMD report.
The ranking comes amid efforts by the federal government to stabilise the economy through the implementation of reforms across critical sectors.
