₦airaland Forum

Nigeria Ranked Fifth-Best English-Speaking Country In Africa, 29th Globally

Data released by the English Proficiency Index (EF Index) has ranked Nigeria highly on the global scale in terms of the ability to speak and communicate in the English language.

According to the data, which stated that the results were arrived at after tests conducted on 2.2 million adults across 123 countries and regions, Nigeria recorded a high proficiency score.

Globally, Nigeria ranks 29th with a score of 568 points. This ranking places the country behind nations such as the Philippines, Zambia, Argentina, Serbia, Malaysia, Czechia, Hungary, Greece, Kenya, Bulgaria, North Macedonia, Latvia, Poland, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Finland, Romania, Slovakia, Belgium, Sweden, Denmark, Portugal, Norway, Germany, Austria, Croatia and the Netherlands.

On the African continent, Nigeria ranks fifth in English proficiency. According to data, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Kenya, and Zambia rank ahead of Nigeria, occupying the first through fourth positions respectively.

In January 2022, SaharaReporters reported that a petition initiated on the online petition-aggregator, Change.org, aimed at stopping demands for English proficiency tests from Nigerians, garnered at least 26,000 signatures.

The petition, which was initiated by Policy Shapers, was titled "Stop asking Nigerians to write IELTS".

It specifically called for an end to foreign institutions’ demands for the International English Language Testing System from Nigerians whose language of instruction at various levels of education was primarily English.

Nigerians seeking to pursue their studies in foreign universities are often required to take an English proficiency test as a means of measuring their understanding of the language.

However, in the petition addressed to then-Home Secretary of the United Kingdom, Priti Patel, the group argued that no Anglophone African country was exempted from taking the test, despite being part of the Commonwealth.

It further stated that the UK Home Office had exempted Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Jamaica, St Kitts and Nevis, Trinidad and Tobago, and 10 other countries from those required to take the test.

kingthreat:
So speaking English is now an special thing?
Celebration of colonization.

SixSeven:
All those who want to japa and go abroad to school should print this news and show them.

We don't need IELTS. We are number 5 in the world

misreal:
So we speak English pass ghana?
I dont believe it.

misreal:
So we speak English pass ghana?
I dont believe it.

SixSeven:
All those who want to japa and go abroad to school should print this news and show them.

We don't need IELTS. We are number 5 in the world

Hopez456:
We may probably be ranked lower because of the need for our money. The money Ielts makes from Nigeria isn't small.

tiswell:
Nigeria should be second after Ghana

Any other ranking na wash

SixSeven:
All those who want to japa and go abroad to school should print this news and show them.

We don't need IELTS. We are number 5 in the world

AndroBlaze:
Even I don't agree with the countries listed ahead of us.

A typical South African does not speak English better than us, and are definitely not the best in Africa.

Zimbabwe is ok. Kenya is ok. But not the typical SA person.

Also, I'd rate Ghanaians slightly better than us.

sweetjohn:
Sometime all this stats are not to be relied on but using your physical first hand experience to judge things. Nigeria can never be ahead of Ghana in English speaking both in just speaking and in phonetics. Don’t follow stats look at average citizens speaks

SmartyPants:
How many average Ghanaians do you know?

MarkNsukkaBread:
Ranking below Ghana would be the greatest insult