Businesses across Nigeria have identified insecurity as their biggest 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.

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 the security and cost pressures, businesses maintained a positive outlook on the economy. According to the report, the Confidence Index remained in positive territory in April 2026, although at a slower pace than in the previous month.

The report noted that all sectors expressed optimism about the macroeconomy, with the industry sector recording the highest confidence level. Respondents also projected that business activity in May, July, and October 2026 would improve.

The CBN said the overall business outlook on the macroeconomy stood at 3.9 index points in April 2026, while projections for the next month, next three months, and next six months stood at 16.9, 27.0, and 34.6 index points, respectively.

It stated 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 expressed 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 industry 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 revealed regional differences in business sentiment, with firms in northern Nigeria expressing stronger optimism than those in the South. The North-East recorded the highest optimism levels 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 business 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 business activity. The volume of business activity index for the next month stood at 23.3 points and is projected to rise to 29.6 points in the next three months and 38.2 points in the next six months.

However, firms remained cautious about employment generation. The report stated that “employment expectations were uniformly negative across sectors overall review periods.”

Manufacturing firms recorded a negative employment outlook index of -9.6 points, while construction firms posted -13.0 points. Mining and quarrying firms 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 further 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 in capacity utilisation 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.”