ABUJA, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)-Businesses across Nigeria have identified insecurity as their most pressing operational challenge in April 2026, ahead of multiple taxation, high interest rates, and bank charges, according to the latest Business Expectations Survey released by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
The report stated that “survey responses for April 2026 indicated that insecurity (74.1), high/multiple taxes (70.5), high interest rate (67.4), high bank charges (62.8), and competition (61.8) ranked as the top five business constraints, indicating that the business environment was shaped more by risk and cost pressures rather than by demand-related factors.”
The apex bank added that the findings showed “the need for improved security conditions, a more supportive fiscal environment, and reduced financing costs to enhance business performance and confidence.”
The survey, conducted from April 6 to April 10, 2026, covered 1,900 business enterprises across the industry, services, and agriculture sectors, with a response rate of 99.4 per cent.
Despite these challenges, businesses
maintained a positive outlook on the economy.
The report showed that the Confidence Index remained in positive territory in April 2026, though at a slower pace compared to the previous month.
It noted that all sectors expressed optimism about the macroeconomy, with the industrial sector recording the highest confidence level.
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Respondents also projected improved business activity in May, July, and October 2026.
The CBN stated that the overall business outlook stood at 3.9 index points in April 2026, while projections for the next one month, three months, and six months were 16.9, 27.0, and 34.6 index points respectively.
It added that optimism was driven largely by “improved expansionary policy measures (19 per cent), access to finance (13 per cent), and expectations of economic diversification (13 per cent).”
However, businesses raised concerns over “ongoing energy-related challenges (35 per cent), governance concerns (33 per cent), and elevated geopolitical uncertainties (14 per cent).”
Sectoral analysis showed that the industrial sector recorded the strongest confidence level in the current month at 8.8 index points, followed by agriculture at 2.7 points and services at 1.5 points.
The report also highlighted regional differences in business sentiment, with firms in northern Nigeria showing stronger optimism than those in the South.
The North-East recorded the highest optimism across all review periods, while the South-East and South-South posted negative outlooks for the current month at -11.9 and -10.6 index points respectively.
On operations, the Mining and Quarrying sector recorded the highest confidence level at 65.2 index points, followed by manufacturing at 33.2 points and agriculture at 32.9 points.
Businesses also expressed positive sentiment on total orders, financial conditions, credit access, and future activity.
The volume of business activity index for the next month stood at 23.3 points, rising to 29.6 points in three months and 38.2 points in six months.
However, firms remained cautious about job creation. The report stated that “employment expectations were uniformly negative across sectors overall review periods.”
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Manufacturing firms recorded an employment outlook of -9.6 points, while construction posted -13.0 points. Mining and quarrying recorded the weakest employment outlook at -15.2 points despite leading expansion plans.
In contrast, the Mining and Quarrying sector recorded the strongest expansion prospect at 84.6 points, followed by agriculture at 67.1 points and market services at 62.5 points.
On the exchange rate outlook, respondents projected a gradual appreciation of the naira against the United States dollar across the review periods, while borrowing costs were expected to remain elevated.
The survey also showed that average capacity utilisation improved from 52.5 per cent in the previous month to 56.0 per cent in April 2026.
According to the report, the improvement was driven mainly by “high demand (23 per cent), supported by seasonality of operations (18 per cent), improved funding (16 per cent), and operational efficiency (13 per cent).”
The Mining and Quarrying; Electricity, Gas and Water Supply sector recorded the highest capacity utilisation at 66.2 per cent, followed by construction at 60.4 per cent, agriculture at 56.8 per cent, and manufacturing at 54.3 per cent.
The CBN noted that the methodology for the Business Expectations Survey was enhanced from April 2026 through the adoption of a five-point weighted diffusion index in place of the previous three-point Likert scale to allow “a more nuanced reporting of respondent sentiments.”