Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, has said Nigeria recorded four million more births than the entire European Union.
Musk made the claim in a post on his X account on Saturday, citing his artificial intelligence chatbot, Grok, as the source of the information.
“Nigeria alone had 4 million more births than the entire EU last year,” he wrote.
According to data generated by Grok, Nigeria recorded an estimated 7.8 million births in 2025, while the European Union recorded about 3.5 million births, meaning Nigeria had approximately four million more births than the bloc during the period.
In February 2026, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) announced that 14 million Nigerian children had their births officially registered over the previous two years, marking significant progress in legal identity coverage.
Africa’s most populous country continues to record a high birth rate, placing additional pressure on its economy and public services.
According to World Bank data, Nigeria’s poverty rate stood at 63 per cent in 2025 amid rising economic hardship driven by the increasing cost of living.
Meanwhile, the Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, said at the 31st Nigerian Economic Summit that, for the first time, Nigeria’s economy was growing faster than its population, which is estimated at about 250 million.
