How to build a diving career in Nigeria

Become a strong, confident swimmer

You cannot dive safely if you cannot swim. When BusinessDay visited ScubaLagos in 2017, students had to be able to swim 200 metres or tread water for 15 minutes before training. Join a swimming club or school team and get comfortable in open water as well as the pool. Our swimming section explains where Nigerians train.

Learn to dive with a recognised agency

Scuba certificates come from international training agencies such as PADI. In Nigeria, ScubaLagos, the country's first PADI dive operator, trains divers from its base at the Lagos Jet Ski Riders Club in Ikoyi. Classes are held in the evenings and at weekends, usually over two to four weeks, with up to eight students per divemaster. Its students have ranged from 14 to 65 years old, and students over 45 need a doctor's clearance.

The first certificate is Open Water Diver, which allows diving to 18 metres. PADI certifications do not expire, but a refresher is wise if you have not dived for a while. Contact details are on our contact page.

Earn your Advanced Open Water for Lagos

Lagos is not an easy place to learn: currents are common and visibility is often 5 to 15 metres. That is why ScubaLagos asks students to complete PADI Advanced Open Water, which trains divers to 30 metres, before joining boat dives to the offshore wrecks. The season runs from November to April, when the sea is calmer. Read our Scuba diving in Lagos guide before you book.

Log your dives and train for rescue

Every professional qualification asks for a logbook. Record every dive: date, site, depth, time and what you learned. Next, take the Rescue Diver course and a first aid and CPR course such as Emergency First Response. These teach you to look after other divers, the most important skill a professional has.

Go professional as a Divemaster

The PADI Divemaster is the first professional rating. To start, PADI requires you to be at least 18, to hold Open Water, Advanced Open Water and Rescue Diver certifications, to have CPR and first aid training within the past 24 months, a physician's medical clearance within 12 months, and at least 40 logged dives. You need 60 logged dives to be certified. Divemasters guide certified divers and assist instructors.

Become a scuba instructor

Instructors teach and certify new divers. To begin a PADI Instructor Development Course (IDC) you must be at least 18, a certified diver for at least six months, a Divemaster, hold current Emergency First Response training, have in-date medical approval and at least 60 logged dives; you need 100 dives to receive the instructor credential. The IDC can take as little as 10 to 14 days, followed by an Instructor Examination run by independent PADI examiners.

Or take the commercial road offshore

Commercial divers inspect, repair and weld pipelines and structures underwater, mostly for the oil and gas industry. It is a different profession from recreational scuba, with its own training standards. In June 2026 the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) sponsored 15 graduates with engineering and geology backgrounds on a 12-month underwater welding and commercial diving programme: foundation training at the Petroleum Training Institute (PTI), Effurun, shallow-water diving at Abraka, sea training at Burutu and final training in South Africa. In 2024, 20 divers trained by NCDMB, SNEPCO and PTI became the first dive medic technicians trained in Nigeria. Watch the NCDMB and PTI for the next intake.