MON FEB 09 2026-theGBJournal| Nigerian CEOs are entering 2026 with increased confidence, supported by improving macroeconomic conditions, as macroeconomic pressures eases, according to the PwC’s 29th Annual Global CEO Survey: Nigerian perspective, released today.
The Survey highlights four priority areas shaping CEO action in Nigeria: strategic reinvention; technology, data and AI; cybersecurity and trust; and sustainability and ESG integration.
Although Nine in ten CEOs (91%) expect Nigeria’s economy to improve over the next 12 months, up from 64% in 2025, Cyber risk and availability of key skills are now the most cited threats, each reported by 38% of CEOs.
Technological disruption (25%), geopolitical conflict (25%), and tariffs (22%) also feature strongly, shifting leadership focus toward execution capability, resilience, and risk management.
Also, the share of CEOs reporting they are highly or extremely exposed to inflation declined from 58% to 34%. Perceived exposure to macroeconomic volatility also fell from 39% to 25%.
These changes, according to PwC, point to a more predictable operating environment and help explain the improvement in short-term business sentiment
observed elsewhere in the survey.
Over the same period, the share of Nigerian CEOs who say they are highly or extremely exposed to geopolitical threats remained unchanged at 25% in both 2025 and 2026, while the global figure increased from 22% to 23%.
Sustainability and ESG-related threats are gaining prominence also, led by talent availability (38%) and social inequality (25%). Perceived exposure to climate change as a threat has also increased, rising from 3% in 2025 to 13% in 2026.
This optimism is reflected at the company level, where 56% of CEOs are very or extremely confident in their organisation’s revenue growth over the next 12 months, compared with 30% globally.
”Nigeria has achieved improved macroeconomic stability over the past year. The focus now is how that stability is translated into sustainable economic growth,
and how businesses position for 2026,” said Sam Abu, Regional Senior Partner, West Market, PwC Nigeria
Olusegun Zaccheaus, Partner, Chief Economist and Strategy Lead, West Market, added; ”The survey mirrors the broader economic outlook. Improved monetary
effectiveness has reduced volatility and clarified pricing, funding, and cost signals, supporting higher CEO confidence.
At the same time, growth prospects remain uneven across sectors, shaped by slower global trade, capital flow pressures, and domestic demand constraints.
For CEOs, this means that reinvention must be selective and grounded in economic fundamentals.
Disciplined capital allocation, clear sector choices, and business models aligned to where growth is most sustainable will determine which organisations convert macro stability into lasting performance in 2026.
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