Academic Freedom Index in Nigeria
Nigeria: Academic Freedom Index was 0.876 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
0.876
Change on year
up 1.5%
World rank
23rd
of 174 countries
All-time high
0.924
in 2022
All-time low
0.668
in 1995
Years of data
79
1947–2025
Academic Freedom Index in Nigeria, 1947–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
Nigeria recorded 0.876 for academic freedom index in 2025.
The figure is up 1.5% on the previous year and down 4.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, academic freedom index in Nigeria peaked at 0.924 in 2022 and was at its lowest, 0.668, in 1995.
Nigeria ranks 23rd of 174 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 79 years of available data.
Academic Freedom Index in Nigeria, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1947 | 0.792 | — |
| 1948 | 0.797 | +0.6% |
| 1949 | 0.797 | +0.0% |
| 1950 | 0.797 | +0.0% |
| 1951 | 0.797 | +0.0% |
| 1952 | 0.797 | +0.0% |
| 1953 | 0.797 | +0.0% |
| 1954 | 0.797 | +0.0% |
| 1955 | 0.797 | +0.0% |
| 1956 | 0.797 | +0.0% |
| 1957 | 0.797 | +0.0% |
| 1958 | 0.797 | +0.0% |
| 1959 | 0.786 | -1.4% |
| 1960 | 0.848 | +7.9% |
| 1961 | 0.848 | +0.0% |
| 1962 | 0.839 | -1.1% |
| 1963 | 0.839 | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 0.839 | +0.0% |
| 1965 | 0.839 | +0.0% |
| 1966 | 0.791 | -5.7% |
| 1967 | 0.769 | -2.8% |
| 1968 | 0.769 | +0.0% |
| 1969 | 0.769 | +0.0% |
| 1970 | 0.764 | -0.7% |
| 1971 | 0.75 | -1.8% |
| 1972 | 0.75 | +0.0% |
| 1973 | 0.745 | -0.7% |
| 1974 | 0.745 | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 0.736 | -1.2% |
| 1976 | 0.743 | +1.0% |
| 1977 | 0.743 | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 0.726 | -2.3% |
| 1979 | 0.758 | +4.4% |
| 1980 | 0.774 | +2.1% |
| 1981 | 0.768 | -0.8% |
| 1982 | 0.77 | +0.3% |
| 1983 | 0.688 | -10.6% |
| 1984 | 0.673 | -2.2% |
| 1985 | 0.692 | +2.8% |
| 1986 | 0.698 | +0.9% |
| 1987 | 0.698 | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 0.692 | -0.9% |
| 1989 | 0.692 | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 0.692 | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 0.692 | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 0.692 | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 0.673 | -2.7% |
| 1994 | 0.686 | +1.9% |
| 1995 | 0.668 | -2.6% |
| 1996 | 0.668 | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 0.668 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 0.712 | +6.6% |
| 1999 | 0.815 | +14.5% |
| 2000 | 0.917 | +12.5% |
| 2001 | 0.917 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 0.917 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 0.915 | -0.2% |
| 2004 | 0.915 | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 0.915 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 0.915 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 0.915 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 0.915 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 0.915 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 0.914 | -0.1% |
| 2011 | 0.907 | -0.8% |
| 2012 | 0.914 | +0.8% |
| 2013 | 0.914 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 0.914 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 0.914 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 0.911 | -0.3% |
| 2017 | 0.914 | +0.3% |
| 2018 | 0.914 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 0.902 | -1.3% |
| 2020 | 0.893 | -1.0% |
| 2021 | 0.899 | +0.7% |
| 2022 | 0.924 | +2.8% |
| 2023 | 0.882 | -4.5% |
| 2024 | 0.863 | -2.2% |
| 2025 | 0.876 | +1.5% |
Nigeria compared with similar countries
- Nigeria's 0.876 is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 0.515, 1.7× the median. (45 countries reporting)
- Nigeria's 0.876 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.519, 1.7× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1940s | 0.7953 | 0.792 | 0.797 | 3 |
| 1950s | 0.7959 | 0.786 | 0.797 | 10 |
| 1960s | 0.815 | 0.769 | 0.848 | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.746 | 0.726 | 0.764 | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.7145 | 0.673 | 0.774 | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.6966 | 0.668 | 0.815 | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.9156 | 0.915 | 0.917 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.9118 | 0.902 | 0.914 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.8895 | 0.863 | 0.924 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Nigeria
More social development data for Nigeria
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 123,848 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 478,150 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 4 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 0 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 4 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.002 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 478,150 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0005 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is academic freedom index in Nigeria?
- Academic freedom index in Nigeria was 0.876 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest academic freedom index recorded in Nigeria?
- The highest recorded value was 0.924 in 2022.
- What is the lowest academic freedom index recorded in Nigeria?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.668 in 1995.
- How does Nigeria rank for academic freedom index?
- Nigeria ranks 23rd out of 174 countries with data for 2025.
- Is academic freedom index rising or falling in Nigeria?
- Over the last ten years it is down 4.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Nigeria data come from?
- The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Academic Freedom Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 79 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Central estimate of the extent to which academics can research, teach, publish, express opinions, and participate in academic bodies without interference, censorship, or institutional restrictions, and universities exercise institutional autonomy.