Rural population growth in Nigeria
Nigeria: Rural population growth was -0.1% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Rural population growth in Nigeria, 1961–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in annual %.
Analysis
In 2025, rural population growth in Nigeria stood at -0.1%. That is the lowest value across all 65 years on record.
The figure is down 113.2% on the previous year and down 116.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rural population growth in Nigeria peaked at 2.1% in 1980 and was at its lowest, -0.1%, in 2025.
Nigeria ranks 121st of 209 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 65 years of available data.
Rural population growth in Nigeria, year by year
| Year | annual % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 1.4% | — |
| 1962 | 1.4% | +2.4% |
| 1963 | 1.5% | +1.4% |
| 1964 | 1.5% | +0.7% |
| 1965 | 1.5% | +0.3% |
| 1966 | 1.5% | -1.3% |
| 1967 | 1.4% | -4.5% |
| 1968 | 1.4% | -0.3% |
| 1969 | 1.4% | +2.8% |
| 1970 | 1.5% | +2.8% |
| 1971 | 1.5% | +1.9% |
| 1972 | 1.5% | +2.5% |
| 1973 | 1.6% | +5.0% |
| 1974 | 1.7% | +6.6% |
| 1975 | 1.8% | +7.2% |
| 1976 | 1.9% | +4.4% |
| 1977 | 2.0% | +4.8% |
| 1978 | 2.1% | +3.0% |
| 1979 | 2.1% | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 2.1% | +0.8% |
| 1981 | 2.0% | -3.1% |
| 1982 | 1.9% | -5.0% |
| 1983 | 1.5% | -21.7% |
| 1984 | 1.5% | -3.2% |
| 1985 | 1.7% | +17.5% |
| 1986 | 1.6% | -7.8% |
| 1987 | 1.5% | -4.3% |
| 1988 | 1.5% | -0.3% |
| 1989 | 1.5% | +0.3% |
| 1990 | 1.5% | -0.1% |
| 1991 | 1.4% | -4.8% |
| 1992 | 1.4% | -2.2% |
| 1993 | 1.4% | -0.2% |
| 1994 | 1.4% | -2.8% |
| 1995 | 1.3% | -2.6% |
| 1996 | 1.3% | -4.0% |
| 1997 | 1.2% | -3.4% |
| 1998 | 1.2% | -1.7% |
| 1999 | 1.2% | -0.8% |
| 2000 | 1.2% | +0.5% |
| 2001 | 1.2% | +0.8% |
| 2002 | 1.2% | -0.6% |
| 2003 | 1.2% | -1.5% |
| 2004 | 1.2% | -1.6% |
| 2005 | 1.1% | -3.0% |
| 2006 | 1.1% | -1.8% |
| 2007 | 1.2% | +6.8% |
| 2008 | 1.2% | -1.6% |
| 2009 | 1.1% | -1.9% |
| 2010 | 1.1% | -1.6% |
| 2011 | 1.1% | -1.7% |
| 2012 | 1.1% | -5.1% |
| 2013 | 1.0% | -8.4% |
| 2014 | 0.9% | -10.6% |
| 2015 | 0.7% | -15.9% |
| 2016 | 0.6% | -13.2% |
| 2017 | 0.6% | -11.6% |
| 2018 | 0.4% | -27.6% |
| 2019 | 0.2% | -37.9% |
| 2020 | 0.1% | -40.1% |
| 2021 | 0.1% | -47.9% |
| 2022 | 0.0% | -54.4% |
| 2023 | 0.0% | -98.6% |
| 2024 | -0.1% | -11261.0% |
| 2025 | -0.1% | +113.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.4% | 1.4% | 1.5% | 9 |
| 1970s | 1.8% | 1.5% | 2.1% | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.7% | 1.5% | 2.1% | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.3% | 1.2% | 1.5% | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.2% | 1.1% | 1.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.8% | 0.2% | 1.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.0% | -0.1% | 0.1% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Nigeria
More agriculture & rural data for Nigeria
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 2.38 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.2298 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 281.32 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate -0.1218 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0003 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.3622 units per person (2025)
- Agriculture share gdp 22.98 (2025)
- Value added in the agricultural sector as of gdp vs gdp per capita 22.98 (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.4% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.6% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is rural population growth in Nigeria?
- Rural population growth in Nigeria was -0.1% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest rural population growth recorded in Nigeria?
- The highest recorded value was 2.1% in 1980.
- What is the lowest rural population growth recorded in Nigeria?
- The lowest recorded value was -0.1% in 2025.
- How does Nigeria rank for rural population growth?
- Nigeria ranks 121st out of 209 countries with data for 2025.
- Is rural population growth rising or falling in Nigeria?
- Over the last ten years it is down 116.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Nigeria data come from?
- The figures come from World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Rural population growth (annual %). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 65 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Annual rural population growth rate for year t is the exponential rate of growth of midyear rural population from year t-1 to t, expressed as a percentage. Rural population refers to people living in rural areas as defined by national statistical offices. It is calculated as the difference between total population and urban population.