Nigeria has taken the lead in Africa’s Web3 ecosystem, accounting for 4% of all new developers worldwide in 2024 – surpassing every other African nation – according to the Nigeria Web3 Landscape 2024 Report by venture capital firm, Hashed Emergent.
According to the report, which also revealed the emergence of blockchain infrastructure startups in Nigeria, the country experienced 28% YoY growth in its developer community in 2024, surpassing 1.1 million developers.
REPORT | Nigeria’s Web3 Infrastructure Startups Dominated 2024 Nigeria Web3 Funding By Raising $11 Million Out of $20 Million
Much of this was fueled by grants from Layer 1 and Layer 2shttps://t.co/pkCSrFrHsg @HashedEM @QuidaxGlobal @Web3Bridge @InfusionLawyers @ethereum pic.twitter.com/4Ji7lN3srZ
— BitKE (@BitcoinKE) April 15, 2025
This growth builds on a 46% surge in 2023 when the country reached 0.87 million developers, positioning it as the fastest-growing developer community on the continent.
The community is still expected to continue growing at a CAGR of 7.6% from 2024 to 2030.
Among the 1.1 million developers:
86% of those engaged in Web3 are under 27 years old, with over half entering the space within the last year.
Female participation has also surged to about 17% over the last 3 years.
The majority got involved through grassroots initiatives such as Web3Bridge, Web3Ladies, and bootcamps hosted by Solana and Base.
The report surveyed 800 developers in the West African nation to understand their characteristics:
39% are revealed to be actively making code contributions
29% are actively involved in contributing to documentation efforts, and
18% in bug fixes.
65% are said to be engaged in technical writing, organizing meetups or building communities,
according to the report.
Despite strong participation:
Only 15% of Nigerian Web3 developers hold full-time positions in the industry.
Most operate as freelancers, with 45% receiving payments in stablecoins – highlighting both a response to local currency instability and the borderless nature of blockchain work.
However, 90% earn below global standards, a disparity driven by local market conditions and ongoing currency depreciation.
According to the report:
Almost half of the developers are students while
6% identify as founders, a 35% increase from previous years, and
41% of the developers are employed or in freelance.
When it comes to technical expertise:
Javascript is the leading programming language for Nigeria’s developers chosen by 50% of all developers due to its familiarity for Web2 developers switching to Web3.
Solidity is used by 21% of developers for Ethereum and EVM-compatible blockchain development.
In terms of chains, these are the top chains used by developers in Nigeria:
Solana
Ethereum
Base
Starknet
TON
Polygon
BNB
Others
From an industry vertical perspective:
DeFi and payments take the lead as the key sectors with around 35% of developers building in these sectors.
Gaming and NFT are popular with 24% of all developers while
Consumer and SocialFi account for 21% of developer involvement
#DeFi and payments continue to lead as the primary #Web3 sectors, with around 35% of all developers in Nigeria actively building in these areas followed closely by gaming and #NFTs.
Source: The Nigeria Web3 Landscape Report 2024: https://t.co/SwnGKp1MDM pic.twitter.com/SbMuA7UaY3
— BitKE (@BitcoinKE) April 19, 2025
Many of the developers are however not well compensated with 89% reporting that their compensation is well below international standards with only 12% satisfied with their pay.
“To sustain and accelerate Nigeria’s web3 ecosystem momentum, stakeholders can focus on strengthening developer pipelines. Expanding initiatives like developer bootcamps, hackathons and building an active developer community can further grow this base,” said Uchenna Edeoga, Platform Associate at Hashed Emergent and lead author of the report.
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