Akwa Ibom is Nigeria’s cleanest state in 2025 with 79% score, according to STONE report, followed by Ebonyi and Enugu

Akwa Ibom has been ranked the cleanest state in Nigeria for 2025, scoring 79 per cent in the State of the Nigerian Environment (STONE) Report 2025.

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The National Coordinator of Clean-Up Nigeria, Ene Owoh, revealed the results during an interview in Abuja on Wednesday.

Akwa Ibom won the STONE 2025 Unbroken Green Crystal Award and the Medal of Service for the eighth consecutive year, from 2018 to 2025.

“Ebonyi and Enugu followed closely, ranking second and third with 65 per cent and 56 per cent respectively,” Owoh said.

The Cleanliness Performance Index identified six geopolitical zone champions:

• South-South: Akwa Ibom – 79%
• South-East: Enugu – 65%
• South-West: Lagos – 48%
• North-East: Bauchi – 50%
• North-Central: Plateau – 52%
• North-West: Kaduna – 35%

The nine cleanest states in Nigeria are Akwa Ibom, Enugu, Ebonyi, Bauchi, Plateau, Cross River, Anambra, Lagos, and the FCT.

The 15-member National Technical Study Group, led by Prof. Solomon Balogun, conducted the yearly study from November 2024 to November 2025.

The report combined physical verification (20% score) with satellite imagery data (80% score) across five variables: street and road cleanliness, vegetation and drainage control, waste management services, public opinion polls, and hygiene practices.

Owoh highlighted worrying trends, including a drop in sanitation worker health from 31% in 2024 to 28% in 2025 and an increase in sanitation-related diseases from 29% to 43%.

Hygiene and sanitation practice among citizens fell to 32%, though open defecation reduced from 24% to 19%.

“Out of Nigeria’s estimated 240 million people, 187.2 million live in unclean environments,” he said, noting that life expectancy dropped from 50 years in 2024 to 47 in 2025.

He urged governments to boost funding for waste management, citizens to prioritise hygiene, and promoted public toilet construction and school environmental clubs.

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Owoh also commended Sen. Oluremi Tinubu’s green initiatives and called for a nationwide green agenda.