Tinubu Approves 65 Ambassadorial Appointments Including Fani-Kayode, Omokri, Dambazau

President Bola Tinubu has approved the posting of 65 ambassadors and high commissioners to various countries and the United Nations. Former Aviation Minister Femi Fani-Kayode will represent Nigeria in Germany, while presidential aide Reno Omokri is assigned to Mexico.

The announcement, signed by the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, revealed that 34 non-career and 31 career diplomats have been posted.

High-profile non-career appointees include former Katsina Governor Lt. Gen. Abdulrahman Dambazau (Beijing, China), Senator Jimoh Ibrahim (UN), Senator Ita Enang (South Africa), former Abia Governor Okezie Ikpeazu (Spain), former Health Minister Prof. Isaac Adewole (Canada), and Lateef Kayode Are (USA).

Other notable postings are former Enugu Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Athens, Greece), Aminu Dalhatu (UK), Ayodele Oke (France), Fatima Ajimobi (Vienna, Austria), Mrs. Lola Akande (Stockholm, Sweden), and Joe-Kyari Okocha, SAN (Dublin, Ireland).

Additional non-career appointments include Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (Manila, Philippines), Paul Adikwu (Vatican City), Nkechi Linda Ufochukwu (Tel Aviv, Israel), Mahmud Yakubu (Doha, Qatar), Yakubu Gambo (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia), Senator Prof. Nora Ladi Dadu

Ambassador Ibrahim Danlami has been posted to Nairobi (Kenya), Ambassador Ayeni Adebayo to Brussels (Belgium), and Ambassador Akande Wahab to Berne (Switzerland).

Other career postings include Ambassador Nwabiola Ezenwa (Côte d’Ivoire), Besto Maimuna Ibrahim to Niamey (Niger), Ahmed Mohammed Monguno to Cairo (Egypt), Ambassador Jane Adams to Kingston (Jamaica), and Ambassador Clark-Omeru Alexandra to Lusaka (Zambia).

Ambassador Muhammad Saidu Dahiru will serve in New Delhi (India), Ambassador Abdussalam Habu Zayyad in Dakar (Senegal), Abubakar Musa in N’Djamena (Chad), Ambassador Haidara Mohammed Idris in The Hague (Netherlands), and Ambassador Bako Adamu Umar in Rabat (Morocco).

Additional career postings include Ambassador Sulu Gambari to Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), Ambassador Romata Mohammed to Dar es Salaam (Tanzania), Ambassador Shaga John to Gaborone (Botswana), Hamza Salau to Tehran (Iran), and Ibrahim Adeola Mopelola to Cotonou (Benin).

Ambassador Wasa Segun Ige will serve in Beirut (Lebanon), Ruben Abimbola Samuel in Rome (Italy), Ambassador Onaga Ogechukwu in Maputo (Mozambique), Ambassador Magaji Umar in Kinshasa (DR Congo), and Ambassador Arewa Esther in Windhoek (Namibia).

Other postings include Chima Geoffrey David to Bamako (Mali), Ambassador Odumah Yvonne to Malabo (Equatorial Guinea), Monica Okwuchukwu to São Tomé (São Tomé and Príncipe), Endoni Syndoph to Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso), Ambassador Gergadi Joseph to Libreville (Gabon), Ambassador Luther Ayo-Kalata to Freetown (Sierra Leone), Danladi Yakubu to Khartoum (Sudan), and Bello Dogon-Daji to Bangkok (Thailand).

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has already received agrément from the United Kingdom for High Commissioner-designate Aminu Dalhatu, while France has sent agrément for Ambassador Ayodele Oke.

“The Ministry has also conveyed the nominations of the other 62 designated envoys to all the countries concerned, including a request for their agréments in line with standard diplomatic practice,” Onanuga stated.

Agrément is the formal approval given by a receiving country to accept a diplomat designated by the sending country, and it is a prerequisite before an ambassador can assume duty.

Tinubu has directed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to immediately commence an induction programme for the ambassadors-designate and high commissioners.

The Senate confirmed all 65 ambassadorial nominees in December 2025 following their screening by the Committee on Foreign Affairs.

The postings include a mix of political appointees, known as non-career ambassadors, and professional diplomats from the Foreign Service, classified as career ambassadors.

Nigeria maintains diplomatic missions in over 100 countries worldwide, with embassies, high commissions, and consulates serving as the country’s representatives in bilateral and multilateral engagements.

The last major ambassadorial postings were made in 2017 under the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari, leaving many Nigerian missions without substantive ambassadors for extended periods.

The ambassadors-designate are expected to assume their duties after completing the induction programme and receiving agrément from their host countries.