The Nigerian passport has reached its highest position in five years, climbing to 88th place out of 199 countries on the latest Henley Passport Index released on July 18.

This positive progress is encouraging, especially since the passport still offers limited travel freedom, with visa-free entry to just 45 countries.

The Henley Passport Index, updated regularly using exclusive data from the International Air Transport Authority (IATA) and expert analysis, captures global changes in passport strength and travel opportunities.

Nigeria now shares the 88th spot with Ethiopia and Myanmar—matching its previous grouping earlier this year when it ranked 91st. While this shows a small improvement, the overall travel privileges with the Nigerian passport remain largely the same as last year, when it was ranked 92nd.

Back in July 2023, Nigeria was ranked 90th but then slipped to 97th later that year, trailing behind several African countries including Burundi, Cameroon, and Liberia. In 2022, the passport was ranked 98th, after falling to a low of 103rd in 2021.

The latest index places Nigeria above just six African nations: the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), South Sudan, Sudan, Eritrea, Libya, and Somalia—consistent with last year's trend.

Seychelles continues to lead as Africa’s most powerful passport, although it dropped slightly to 24th worldwide with visa-free access to 156 countries, down from its 22nd spot in March.

Globally, Singapore remains at the top with access to 193 destinations, while Afghanistan stays at the bottom, with visa-free entry to only 25 countries.

The United States, which led globally in 2014, has dropped to 10th place in the latest rankings.

Here’s a look at the top 10:

- Singapore (193 destinations)
- Japan, South Korea (190)
- Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Spain (189)
- Austria, Belgium, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Sweden (188)
- Greece, New Zealand, Switzerland (187)
- United Kingdom (186)
- Australia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Malta, Poland (185)
- Canada, Estonia, United Arab Emirates (184)
- Croatia, Latvia, Slovakia, Slovenia (183)
- Iceland, Lithuania, United States (182)