Two President Bola Tinubu ambassadorial nominees, Femi Fani-Kayode and Reno Omokri will need to wait for another day to know the countries they will be posted to respectively.
President officially approved the posting of four high-profile ambassador-designates to key global diplomatic missions. The move is part of a broader effort to strengthen Nigeria’s international relations and fill critical vacancies in the nation’s foreign service.
The appointments, drawn from a pool of 68 nominees previously confirmed by the Senate, were announced in a State House press release on Wednesday, signed by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.
The new envoys have been assigned to some of Nigeria’s most strategic partner nations: Ambassador Ayodele Oke has been appointed as Nigeria’s ambassador-designate to France, while Colonel Lateef Are has been named as the ambassador-designate to the United States of America.
The President also approved the posting of Ambassador Amin Dalhatu, a former Nigerian envoy to South Korea, as the new high commissioner-designate to the United Kingdom.
Former Kebbi State Governor, Usman Isa Dakingari Suleiman, was appointed as Nigeria’s ambassador-designate to Turkey, a development coming ahead of President Tinubu’s scheduled state visit to the country next week.
The appointment of Suleiman to Turkey is particularly significant, as it comes just days ahead of President Tinubu’s scheduled state visit to the country next week. Diplomats suggest the move is intended to ensure a seamless diplomatic presence during high-level bilateral talks between both nations.
In a formal memo addressed to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, President Tinubu directed the ministry to initiate the official notification process for the host governments.
“The Ministry has been directed to formally notify the governments of the four host countries of the appointments, in line with established diplomatic procedures,” the statement read.
This latest round of postings is seen as a major step in the Tinubu administration’s “Renewed Hope” foreign policy agenda, which prioritizes economic diplomacy and security cooperation with traditional and emerging global allies.
