Nigeria has emerged as the most represented country in Sub-Saharan Africa in the 2026 Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings and the THE Sub-Saharan Africa University Rankings, with 24 universities making this year’s list.
The Federal Ministry of Education announced the development on Friday, describing it as another indication that ongoing reforms in the country’s higher education sector are beginning to reflect in global assessments.
According to the Ministry, Nigeria increased its representation from 21 ranked universities in both 2024 and 2025 to 24 institutions in the 2026 rankings, making it the largest contributor from the region.
Among the highest-ranked Nigerian institutions are the University of Ibadan, University of Lagos, and Bayero University, Kano, while 17 of the 24 ranked universities are federal institutions.
The Ministry also disclosed that 27 additional Nigerian universities participated in the assessment process, although they did not make the final ranking list.
Commenting on the achievement, the Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa, said the outcome reflects the impact of reforms being implemented under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda and the Nigerian Education Sector Renewal Initiative (NESRI).
According to the Minister, sustained investments in higher education, research, quality assurance and institutional development are gradually improving the global competitiveness of Nigerian universities.
The Ministry noted that the rankings reinforce its commitment to strengthening research, expanding access to quality education, promoting innovation, and positioning Nigerian universities to compete more effectively on the global stage.
The Times Higher Education rankings are widely regarded as one of the world’s leading university performance assessments, measuring institutions across indicators such as teaching quality, research environment, research excellence, industry engagement and international outlook.
As Nigerian universities continue to improve their presence on global ranking platforms, education stakeholders say the challenge now extends beyond representation to improving overall institutional performance, research impact and graduate outcomes.
