Nigeria attracted a complete of $16.78 billion in capital importation within the first 9 months of 2025, however buyers from different ECOWAS nations accounted for less than $2.16 million, representing a negligible 0.01% of complete inflows, in accordance with the most recent capital importation information launched by the Nationwide Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
A breakdown of the NBS figures reveals that the $2.16 million got here from 11 ECOWAS nations that stay within the regional bloc, together with Ghana, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, and Guinea.
The info highlights the restricted scale of intra-West African capital flows into Nigeria regardless of its place as the biggest financial system throughout the regional bloc.
What does the info present
Capital inflows from ECOWAS nations declined by 8.1% year-on-year, dropping from $2.35 million within the first 9 months of 2024 to $2.16 million in the identical interval of 2025.
- This contraction occurred at the same time as Nigeria’s complete capital importation greater than doubled year-on-year. Whole inflows rose from $7.23 billion in 9M 2024 to $16.78 billion in 9M 2025, reflecting a 132% improve.
- In 2024, ECOWAS inflows have been largely pushed by Ghana, which recorded $2.35 million within the third quarter of that 12 months. In 2025, inflows have been extra distributed however remained small in worth.
- Ghana contributed $1.50 million in 9M 2025, down from $2.35 million a 12 months earlier, marking a 36.2% year-on-year decline. Ghana accounted for 69.4% of complete ECOWAS inflows into Nigeria through the interval.
- Different contributors included Sierra Leone with $0.26 million, Guinea with $0.13 million, Senegal with $0.11 million, Benin and Liberia with $0.05 million every, and Côte d’Ivoire with $0.03 million.
- Cape Verde, The Gambia, Guinea-Bissau and Togo recorded zero capital importation into Nigeria in each 9M 2024 and 9M 2025.
Among the many three Sahel nations which have introduced withdrawal from ECOWAS, Burkina Faso contributed $0.05 million, Mali recorded $0.01 million, whereas Niger posted no inflows.
Mixed, the three nations accounted for $0.05 million in 9M 2025.
When added to the $2.16 million from remaining ECOWAS nations, complete regional inflows rise to $2.21 million.
This represents 0.013% of Nigeria’s complete capital importation, which nonetheless rounds to 0.01%.
The general share contribution stays unchanged.
Quarterly breakdown reveals excessive focus
Quarterly information for 2025 reveal that ECOWAS inflows have been extremely concentrated in a single quarter.
Within the first quarter of 2025, ECOWAS nations contributed $0.04 million, completely from Benin. Within the second quarter, there have been no recorded inflows from the bloc. Within the third quarter, inflows surged to roughly $2.12 million, largely pushed by Ghana’s $1.50 million, alongside smaller contributions from Sierra Leone, Senegal, Guinea, Liberia, Benin and Côte d’Ivoire.
Which means roughly 98% of ECOWAS capital inflows in 9M 2025 occurred within the third quarter alone, indicating volatility and weak consistency in regional funding flows.
By comparability, Nigeria recorded complete capital importation of $5.64 billion in Q1 2025, $5.12 billion in Q2, and $6.01 billion in Q3. Towards these quarterly totals, ECOWAS inflows stay statistically insignificant.
Nigerian-based buyers outpace regional bloc by a large margin
The info additionally reveals that international capital introduced in by Nigerian-based buyers amounted to $14.77 million in 9M 2025, in comparison with $14.54 million in 9M 2024.
- This implies Nigerian buyers alone accounted for practically seven instances the whole inflows from all ECOWAS nations mixed in 2025.
- The figures present the shallow stage of monetary integration inside West Africa. Regardless of commerce agreements and free motion protocols beneath ECOWAS, cross-border capital flows into Nigeria from the subregion stay minimal and structurally weak.
Even with political realignments involving Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, the info means that regional capital engagement was already negligible earlier than diplomatic tensions escalated.
