According to Nigeria’s statistics agency, government officials accepted $1.3 billion in bribes in 2023.

Nigerian officials are demanding and receiving bribes to deliver public services, with rural residents paying more than those in urban areas, according to a survey by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

In 2023, Nigerians were forced to pay an estimated 721 billion naira in cash bribes, equivalent to $1.26 billion, which represented 0.35% of GDP, according to the NBS. The agency reported, “The frequency of bribery is, on average, higher in rural areas than in urban areas. In 2023, bribe-payers living in urban areas paid on average 4.5 bribes, while those in rural areas paid on average 5.8 bribes.”

The estimated number of bribes exchanged declined from 117 million in 2019 to 87 million in 2023, due to reduced contact with public officials, which dropped from 63% to 53% of the population. Bribery was most common among prosecutors, land registry officers, and customs and immigration officers, though judges and magistrates received the largest kickbacks.

Despite government pledges to fight corruption, public officials have developed a reputation for converting public funds for personal use, and government workers frequently demand gratification before performing their duties. Nigeria ranks 145 out of 180 countries on Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index.

A cost-of-living crisis, driven by currency reforms and partial removal of a gasoline subsidy, emboldened 23% of Nigerians to refuse to pay a bribe when demanded. Economic hardship, which has led to looting and stampedes for food, was ranked higher on the list of priorities than corruption, which placed fourth behind insecurity and unemployment.

Bribe payments in the private sector more than doubled in 2023, though public-sector corruption remained dominant. Data collected between October and November showed that less than a third of Nigerians believed the government was effective in fighting corruption, down from more than half in 2019 during the tenure of former president Muhammadu Buhari, who was elected in 2015 on promises to end corruption.