Benin City

Benin City, Nigeria, scores 42 on the CIRA Index of tourism resilience, #268 of 309 destinations. 24 of 29 measures come from public sources, with 71% confidence. Every grade below states its value, period and source.

Scores by each organisation's criteria

CIRA Index: 42
OECD: 41
UN Tourism: 47
UNDRR: 28

Strongest

Municipal waste per resident: 251.9 kg per resident per year (Direct Research Journal of Engineering and Information Technology / AJOL: A Review on Solid Waste Generation and Management in Nigeria Cities, 2025). At or below 350: grade 4/4.
Water scarcity: very low (region figure) (World Bank GFDRR ThinkHazard, current (retrieved 2026)). Grade 4/4.
Unemployment rate: 4.4 % of the labour force (region figure) (National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Nigeria Labour Force Survey Annual Report 2023, 2023). At or below 5: grade 4/4.

Weakest

Government effectiveness: 12.7 World Bank WGI percentile rank, 0–100 (country figure) (World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025). Below 20: grade 0/4.
Wastewater safely treated: 40.7 % of domestic wastewater safely treated (country figure) (United Nations in Nigeria, Sustainable Development Goal 6: Clean Water and Sanitation, 2024). Below 50: grade 0/4.
Country disaster risk: 7.2 INFORM Risk index, 0–10 (country figure) (INFORM Risk (European Commission JRC), INFORM Risk Mid 2026, 2026). Above 6.5: grade 0/4.

Nigeria in the World Economic Forum Travel & Tourism Development Index

Nigeria is #104 of 110 countries (3.2 of 7) in the WEF Travel & Tourism Development Index 2026, which scores countries, not cities. Cities in countries with that WEF score average 51 on the CIRA Index; Benin City is 9 below that.

Every measure, by theme

Demand and seasonality: 55

Nights in the three busiest months: not measured yet
Domestic share of nights: 88.4 % of nights by residents of the same country (country figure) (World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) Economic Impact Research (EIR), 2025). At or above 45: grade 4/4. Source
Largest foreign market: 18 % of international arrivals or nights (country figure) (World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), Nigeria Economic Impact Report 2024, 2023). Between 15 and 20: grade 3/4. Source
Recovery against 2019: 26.9 % of 2019 visitor nights reached in the latest full year (country figure) (UN Tourism, International Tourism Highlights (2025 Edition), 2024). Below 80: grade 0/4. Source
Average length of stay: 7 nights per visitor (country figure) (Aninver Development Partners, Nigeria Hotel Market Report 2025, 2021). At or above 3.5: grade 4/4. Source
Hotel bed or room occupancy: 23.6 % average annual occupancy (AirROI, Benin City, Edo State Airbnb Data 2025: Occupancy, Revenue & STR Market Report, 2025). Below 45: grade 0/4. Source

Economy and jobs: 56

Jobs in tourism industries: 7.8 % of employment in accommodation and food services (country figure) (National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Nigeria Labour Force Survey Annual Report 2023, 2023). At or below 8: grade 4/4. Source
Unemployment rate: 4.4 % of the labour force (region figure) (National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Nigeria Labour Force Survey Annual Report 2023, 2023). At or below 5: grade 4/4. Source
Income per head: 5,325 GDP per capita, USD PPP (region figure) (BudgIT, State of States 2022 Report, 2021). Below 15,000: grade 0/4. Source
Economic diversity: 60.2 % of employment outside accommodation, food, retail and transport (country figure) (National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Nigeria Labour Force Survey Annual Report 2023, 2023). Between 55 and 64: grade 1/4. Source

Climate and hazards: 20

Extreme heat days: 35.8 days a year at or above 35°C (last 5 full years) (ERA5 reanalysis via Open-Meteo, 2021–2025). Between 30 and 60: grade 1/4. Source
Tropical nights: 358 nights a year with a minimum at or above 20°C (last 5 full years) (ERA5 reanalysis via Open-Meteo, 2021–2025). Above 100: grade 0/4. Source
Flood hazard: medium (region figure) (World Bank GFDRR ThinkHazard, current (retrieved 2026)). Grade 2/4. Source
Wildfire and storm hazard: high (region figure) (World Bank GFDRR ThinkHazard, current (retrieved 2026)). Grade 1/4. Source
Country disaster risk: 7.2 INFORM Risk index, 0–10 (country figure) (INFORM Risk (European Commission JRC), INFORM Risk Mid 2026, 2026). Above 6.5: grade 0/4. Source

Water and environment: 56

Water scarcity: very low (region figure) (World Bank GFDRR ThinkHazard, current (retrieved 2026)). Grade 4/4. Source
Wastewater safely treated: 40.7 % of domestic wastewater safely treated (country figure) (United Nations in Nigeria, Sustainable Development Goal 6: Clean Water and Sanitation, 2024). Below 50: grade 0/4. Source
Municipal waste per resident: 251.9 kg per resident per year (Direct Research Journal of Engineering and Information Technology / AJOL: A Review on Solid Waste Generation and Management in Nigeria Cities, 2025). At or below 350: grade 4/4. Source
Green space: 15.9 % of the urban area that is green or tree-covered (Journal of Applied Life Sciences and Environment: Urban Landscape Analysis in Benin City, 2022). Between 10 and 20: grade 1/4. Source

Community and housing

Tourism intensity: not measured yet
Cruise pressure: not measured yet
Rent growth: not measured yet
Short-let density: not measured yet
Resident support for tourism: not measured yet

Access and continuity: 17

Access redundancy: 1 independent ways in: international airport, intercity rail, port, motorway (Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria / Federal Ministry of Works, 2026). Between 1 and 2: grade 1/4. Source
Air traffic recovery: not measured yet
Rail share of intercity access: not measured yet
Rail traffic recovery: not measured yet
Largest airline group share: not measured yet
Air route concentration: not measured yet
Early warning and emergency plan: A national system only; no city plan found (Edo State Flood, Erosion & Watershed Management Agency (EdoFEWMA) via The Nigerian Observer, 2025). Grade 1/4. Source
Tourism crisis and recovery plan: No tourism crisis or recovery plan found (Edo State Government, 2026). Grade 0/4. Source
Government effectiveness: 12.7 World Bank WGI percentile rank, 0–100 (country figure) (World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025). Below 20: grade 0/4. Source
Travel advisory: 3 stricter of the US and Canadian government advisory for the country, 1 (normal precautions) to 4 (do not travel) (country figure) (US State Department and Government of Canada travel advisories, 2026-09-29). Between 2.5 and 3: grade 1/4. Source
Dedicated tourism funding: A promotion budget that depends each year on the general budget (Edo State Government Approved Budget, 2026). Grade 1/4. Source

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