Northern states recorded mixed outcomes in the 2025 Fiscal Performance Ranking published Tuesday by civic tech organisation BudgIT, with Kwara emerging among the top performers while Zamfara posted one of the year’s biggest improvements.
Kwara State climbed from 4th to 3rd position — the only northern state in the national top five. Zamfara surged nine places to 17th, driven by improved fiscal management indicators. Taraba also joined a small group of states prioritising capital investment, with more than 70 per cent of expenditure directed to infrastructure projects.
Yobe, Gombe, and Bauchi earned recognition for strong execution of their health budgets, with Yobe topping national rankings at 98.2 per cent implementation. Katsina, Bauchi and Yobe were also among nine states that exceeded 80 per cent performance in education spending.
However, a majority of northern states still featured in the bottom half of the national league table, reflecting slow fiscal recovery in parts of the region grappling with insecurity, low private investment and weak revenue systems.
BudgIT said fiscal pressures remain severe and warned that 14 states now require more than five times their Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) to cover operating expenses, up from six in 2024.
Southern States Dominate Overall Chart
In the overall national rankings, Anambra placed 1st, rising from second position last year, while Lagos retained 2nd for the second consecutive year. Abia (4th) and Edo (5th) completed the top five — a clean sweep by southern states except Kwara.
Cross River suffered the biggest decline in the South, plunging from 5th to 30th. Rivers State was excluded from the entire dataset following a state-of-emergency declaration that prevented timely publication of audited accounts.
| Rank | State | Region |
| 1 | Anambra | South |
| 2 | Lagos | South |
| 3 | Kwara | North |
| 4 | Abia | South |
| 5 | Edo | South |
| 6 | Delta | South |
| 7 | Kano | North |
| 8 | Nasarawa | North |
| 9 | Ogun | South |
| 10 | Akwa Ibom | South |
| 11 | Oyo | South |
| 12 | Osun | South |
| 13 | Enugu | South |
| 14 | Kaduna | North |
| 15 | Ebonyi | South |
| 16 | Bayelsa | South |
| 17 | Zamfara | North |
| 18 | Gombe | North |
| 19 | Ondo | South |
| 20 | Niger | North |
| 21 | Adamawa | North |
| 22 | Bauchi | North |
| 23 | Kebbi | North |
| 24 | Borno | North |
| 25 | Taraba | North |
| 26 | Imo | South |
| 27 | Sokoto | North |
| 28 | Ekiti | South |
| 29 | Katsina | North |
| 30 | Cross River | South |
| 31 | Plateau | North |
| 32 | Kogi | North |
| 33 | Jigawa | North |
| 34 | Benue | North |
| 35 | Yobe | North |
Revenue and Debt Trends
BudgIT reported a sharp 66.28% rise in total recurrent revenues across the 35 states analysed — increasing from ₦8.66 trillion in 2023 to ₦14.4 trillion in 2024 — fuelled largely by higher federal allocations.
Lagos remained Nigeria’s fiscal powerhouse with ₦1.93 trillion revenue, while Oyo, Delta and Anambra recorded more than 600% growth in FAAC allocations in ten years.
Subnational debt rose by 6.8% to ₦10.57 trillion, with Lagos, Kaduna, Edo, Ogun and Bauchi accounting for more than half of all state debts combined.
Only five states — Anambra, Lagos, Kwara, Ogun and Edo — generated at least 50% of their operating expenses from internal revenues.
“States Must Look Inward” — BudgIT
With this year marking the 10th edition of the State of States report, BudgIT says the fiscal landscape continues to mirror Nigeria’s regional inequalities.
“Fiscal sustainability requires states to improve revenue systems, cut waste and prioritise infrastructure investment,”
— Vahyala Kwaga, Head of Research, BudgIT
Despite some progress the organisation warned that 28 of 35 states still rely on federal transfers for at least 55% of total revenue.
