Nearly two years after President Bola Tinubu recalled all ambassadors, their replacements are expected to be announced “very soon.”
According to sources familiar with the development, Reuters reports that the federal government has begun vetting potential candidates. An intelligence official confirmed that background checks are being conducted on possible appointees, with the findings shared with relevant agencies within the presidency and legislature.
Tinubu recalled all career and non-career ambassadors in September 2023, just six months into his presidency.
Since then, the president has appointed consuls-general and chargés d’affaires, but no timeline has been given for when the recalled ambassadors’ successors will assume office.
Despite this, Tinubu has continued to receive letters of credence from foreign ambassadors newly posted to Nigeria, raising concerns among diplomatic stakeholders about the leadership vacuum at Nigerian missions abroad.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Yusuf Tuggar previously attributed the delay in appointing ambassadors to funding constraints.
A government source told Reuters that the issue “is being resolved,” adding that “the appointments will be announced very soon.”
For 2025, the federal government has allocated N302.4 billion to its foreign missions.
