Nigeria Administrative Divisions

What is the hierarchy of administrative divisions in Nigeria?

Nigeria operates on a 3‑level system starting with 37 states, then local government areas, and areas, 2 cities as the smallest administrative units.

Here’s a breakdown of the hierarchy:

1. States: Nigeria is divided into 37 states.

2. Local Government Areas: States are subdivided into local government areas.

3. Areas, 2 Cities: These are the smallest administrative units, often found within local government areas.

List of Nigeria's administrative divisions with their counts and names

These are the summarized administrative divisions. The full dataset is available in the Download Center.

isocountryadmin level 1admin level 2admin level 3admin level 4
NGNigeriaAbia (State)17 Local Government Areas124 Areas, 2 CitiesThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaAbuja (FCT) (Federal Capital Territory)6 Local Government Areas1 City, 25 AreasThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaAdamawa (State)21 Local Government Areas3 Cities, 99 AreasThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaAkwa Ibom (State)31 Local Government Areas134 Areas, 1 CityThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaAnambra (State)21 Local Government Areas168 Areas, 2 CitiesThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaBauchi (State)20 Local Government Areas1 City, 63 AreasThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaBayelsa (State)8 Local Government Areas1 City, 9 AreasThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaBenue (State)23 Local Government Areas2 Cities, 74 AreasThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaBorno (State)27 Local Government Areas3 Cities, 44 AreasThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaCross River (State)18 Local Government Areas2 Cities, 75 AreasThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaDelta (State)25 Local Government Areas125 Areas, 4 CitiesThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaEbonyi (State)13 Local Government Areas1 City, 85 AreasThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaEdo (State)18 Local Government Areas108 Areas, 2 CitiesThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaEkiti (State)16 Local Government Areas3 Cities, 40 AreasThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaEnugu (State)17 Local Government Areas167 Areas, 1 CityThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaGombe (State)11 Local Government Areas1 City, 54 AreasThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaImo (State)27 Local Government Areas235 Areas, 3 CitiesThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaJigawa (State)27 Local Government Areas2 Cities, 31 AreasThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaKaduna (State)23 Local Government Areas156 Areas, 2 CitiesThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaKano (State)44 Local Government Areas2 Cities, 41 AreasThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaKatsina (State)34 Local Government Areas35 Areas, 3 CitiesThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaKebbi (State)21 Local Government Areas46 Areas, 4 CitiesThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaKogi (State)21 Local Government Areas1 City, 52 AreasThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaKwara (State)16 Local Government Areas1 City, 44 AreasThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaLagos (State)20 Local Government Areas13 Areas, 3 CitiesThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaNasarawa (State)13 Local Government Areas45 AreasThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaNiger (State)25 Local Government Areas2 Cities, 40 AreasThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaOgun (State)20 Local Government Areas4 Cities, 56 AreasThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaOndo (State)18 Local Government Areas2 Cities, 88 AreasThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaOsun (State)30 Local Government Areas106 Areas, 5 CitiesThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaOyo (State)33 Local Government Areas3 Cities, 77 AreasThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaPlateau (State)17 Local Government Areas2 Cities, 89 AreasThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaRivers (State)23 Local Government Areas25 Areas, 2 CitiesThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaSokoto (State)23 Local Government Areas2 Cities, 33 AreasThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaTaraba (State)16 Local Government Areas2 CitiesThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaYobe (State)17 Local Government Areas2 Cities, 39 AreasThis level doesn’t exist for this country.
NGNigeriaZamfara (State)14 Local Government Areas18 Areas, 1 CityThis level doesn’t exist for this country.

Why is building an Administrative Divisions Database complex?

The complexity arises from inconsistent global standards, frequent boundary changes, non-uniform naming conventions (e.g., “suburb” in Australia vs. “county” in the US), and variations in administrative levels across countries. Integrating and harmonizing data from multiple sources requires advanced normalization, versioning, and geospatial validation techniques.

How does GeoPostcodes solve the problem for you?

Our standardized database overcomes the complexity of different administrative division
systems worldwide. Our database follows a unified structure that you can integrate
seamlessly into your system or platform of choice without needing to become an expert in
each country’s unique administrative hierarchy.

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