By Attah Ede
The latest Internally Generated Revenue at State Level (2025) report released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in September 2026 has placed Lagos State as the state with the highest internally generated revenue in Nigeria.
The report revealed that Lagos State generated ₦1.77 trillion in Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) in 2025, accounting for more than a third of the combined revenue generated by Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
The figure is contained in the latest Internally Generated Revenue at State Level (2025) report released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in September 2026.
The report showed that the 36 states and the FCT generated a combined ₦5.15 trillion in IGR during the year, representing a 40.93 per cent increase from the ₦3.65 trillion recorded in 2024.
According to the NBS, total IGR stood at ₦5,149,040,235,770.33 in 2025.
Lagos topped the revenue table with ₦1,769,194,412,060.40, made up of ₦1.48 trillion in tax revenue and ₦292.64 billion generated by Ministries, Departments and Agencies.
The state’s total revenue represented about 34.4 per cent of the combined IGR of the 36 states and FCT.
Rivers State ranked second with ₦428.42 billion, comprising ₦414.38 billion in tax revenue and ₦14.03 billion in MDA revenue.
Enugu occupied third position with ₦406.77 billion.
Unlike most of the leading revenue-generating states, Enugu’s figure was driven overwhelmingly by MDA revenue, which contributed ₦355.25 billion, while tax revenue stood at ₦51.52 billion.
The Federal Capital Territory generated ₦356.34 billion, ranking ahead of Ogun, which recorded ₦252.36 billion.
Delta State generated ₦202.49 billion, while Edo recorded ₦132.21 billion.
Oyo generated ₦103.25 billion, Kano ₦102.26 billion and Akwa Ibom ₦100.80 billion.
PAYE Drives Tax Revenue
The NBS report showed that tax revenue remained the dominant component of IGR nationwide.
Of the ₦5.15 trillion generated in 2025, ₦3.79 trillion, representing 73.64 per cent, came from tax revenue, while MDAs generated ₦1.36 trillion.
Pay As You Earn (PAYE) was the biggest tax revenue source, generating ₦2.64 trillion, equivalent to 69.51 per cent of total tax revenue.
Capital Gains Tax recorded the lowest contribution among the major tax categories, at ₦12.40 billion.
The report defines PAYE as personal income tax deducted from employees, particularly those in the formal sector.
Direct Assessment covers taxes imposed on self-employed individuals and informal businesses, while Road Taxes include levies collected from commercial transport operators.
MDA revenue comprises non-tax income generated by Ministries, Departments and Agencies in the course of providing public services.
Yobe recorded the lowest IGR at the bottom of the revenue table, generating ₦16.01 billion in 2025.
Ebonyi followed with ₦17.18 billion, while Sokoto recorded ₦20.48 billion.
Other states with relatively low IGR included Taraba at ₦28.16 billion, Benue at ₦29.57 billion, Zamfara at ₦30.07 billion and Kebbi at ₦31.23 billion.
The figures reveal a substantial disparity in the revenue-generating capacity of Nigeria’s sub-national governments.
While Lagos alone generated ₦1.77 trillion, the combined IGR of Yobe, Ebonyi and Sokoto was about ₦53.67 billion.
States Increase Reliance on Internally Generated Revenue
The 40.93 per cent year-on-year increase in IGR represents an increase of about ₦1.49 trillion over the 2024 figure.
The NBS said the growth reflected improvements in tax administration, expanded digital revenue collection channels and increased domestic economic activity.
The increase comes as state governments seek to strengthen their own revenue bases and reduce reliance on allocations from the Federation Account.
The figures also show the varying contribution of tax and non-tax revenue across the states.
While Lagos, Rivers and the FCT generated the bulk of their revenue from taxation, Enugu recorded a much larger contribution from MDA revenue.
The NBS report provides a state-by-state breakdown of tax and MDA revenue generated during 2025, offering a detailed picture of the fiscal capacity and revenue performance of Nigeria’s sub-national governments.
