West Africa Time (WAT)
Lagos operates on West Africa Time (WAT). This time zone does not observe Daylight Saving Time.
Time Zone: West Africa Time (WAT) — Standard Offset: UTC+1 (WAT) — DST: Not observed
Country: Nigeria
This city does not observe Daylight Saving Time. The UTC offset remains constant year-round, which simplifies international scheduling.
Lagos operates on WAT (UTC+1), the same offset as Paris and Berlin. Nigeria does not observe DST. Lagos is Africa's largest city by population and the economic engine of West Africa. The Nigerian Stock Exchange (now NGX) trades from 10:00 AM to 2:30 PM WAT. Lagos's fintech sector — including companies like Flutterwave, Paystack (acquired by Stripe), and Interswitch — has made WAT increasingly important in global tech.
The UTC+1 match with Central European Time means Lagos and European business hours overlap almost perfectly during winter (both CET and WAT are UTC+1). During European summer time (CEST, UTC+2), Lagos falls 1 hour behind — still excellent overlap. This alignment facilitates the extensive trade and business relationships between West Africa and Europe.
Lagos is the undisputed tech hub of Africa, sometimes called the Silicon Valley of Africa. The Yaba district hosts hundreds of startups, and major international tech companies have established Lagos offices. The UTC+1 offset makes real-time collaboration with European tech hubs seamless and US East Coast coordination manageable (6 hours ahead, 5 during EDT).
Nigerian business hours typically run from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, Monday through Friday. Lagos's notorious traffic can affect scheduling — meetings may start late due to commute times, so building in buffer time is common practice. The city's vibrant economy operates at a fast pace despite infrastructure challenges, and its young, tech-savvy population increasingly drives business innovation on WAT.