Digital Spy's Nelson C.J. wrote that the subject matter of Citation was important to discuss, and treated with an "objective and sufficiently informed" perspective within the film. C.J. praised the cinematography, but found that the dialogue could have been improved and the main character given more depth.[4] Tambay Obenson of IndieWire praised the film as an "unflinching wakeup call that extends well beyond Nigeria's borders".[5] According to Nollywood Post, "Citation is a good film that was intended to have a social value proposition. Tunde Babaolo and Kunle Afolayan were able to perfectly deliver on this proposition with a few forgivable misses."[6]