10 Best Business Schools in Nigeria

17 Sep 2025

Business schools in Nigeria are institutions or units within universities and standalone entities that provide training in business management, leadership, entrepreneurship, executive education, MBA/EMBA/MSc programmes, and short courses for managers and business professionals. They fulfill a critical role in developing the managerial, leadership and entrepreneurial capacities needed to drive both private sector growth and public sector development in Nigeria. Key factors that mark out the top business schools include accreditations (national bodies like the National Universities Commission, and if possible international ones like AACSB, AMBA), quality of faculty (academic credentials + industry experience), curriculum relevance (practical, contextualised to Nigerian & African business environments), executive and short courses in addition to full MBAs, strong industry linkage, alumni network, research output, and good infrastructure. Nigeria has both public university business schools and private ones. Public ones (like University of Lagos, Ahmadu Bello University, Obafemi Awolowo University, University of Nigeria) tend to have lower tuition fees, strong academic reputation, but sometimes face challenges such as infrastructure constraints, funding, and striking staff. Private business schools (or those attached to private universities) often offer more modern facilities, sometimes smaller class sizes, possibly more flexibility, but also higher fees. Trending in recent years are more Executive MBA programmes, online or hybrid delivery, entrepreneurship development, sustainability & ESG topics, digital transformation, and more emphasis on case-studies and experiential learning. For students, deciding among business schools often involves considering cost, location, duration, recognition, specialisations, and the learning style (e.g. lot of interaction, network, hands-on projects).