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President Bola Tinubu has received a fresh list of ambassador-designates and is weighing when to transmit it to the Senate, multiple Presidency sources have confirmed to The PUNCH.

Top officials familiar with the process said all security and background checks on nominees had been completed, awaiting only the President’s nod before being transmitted to the red chamber for screening.

The sources spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not authorised to comment publicly.

“The list is ready. It’s ready. It is now with the President, and it’s up to him,” one senior official said on Tuesday.

“All those security checks, they are done with. But he has not mentioned when he wants to send it to the Senate,” the source clarified.

Another source explained that, when the President finally moves, the appointment will be staggered, with envoys to “major partner countries” announced first, while others will follow later.

“He cannot announce all the ambassadors at once,” the official said, adding, “It is only those we intend to send to our key partner countries that will be announced, because the main reason why this thing has delayed is money. A humongous amount is involved in getting these ambassadors settled. So, we will send out those few ambassadors first and then others later.”

Although The PUNCH could not immediately confirm the countries involved, checks by our correspondent revealed that Nigeria’s key partners are the countries with the deepest trade, security and political ties.

These include the United States of America, the United Kingdom, the European Union states (notably France and Germany), China, India and core ECOWAS neighbours.

Relations between the U.S. and the UK are anchored in oil and security cooperation.

Nigeria is a major crude supplier, a key counter-terrorism ally and a Commonwealth partner with a huge diaspora footprint.

The EU as a bloc is Nigeria’s largest trading partner and investor, backing big-ticket projects and governance reforms, while France and Germany add security support in the North-East and Sahel.

China and India are critical for energy and infrastructure. China’s loans and Belt and Road projects have financed Nigeria’s rail lines, airports and power plants, while India is a top buyer of Nigerian crude and a major pharma and ICT partner.

Within Africa, ECOWAS capitals such as Accra, Niamey and Cotonou have historically been priority postings, given Nigeria’s role as the region’s largest economy and chief crisis mediator.

The latest development comes more than two years after President Tinubu’s decision in September 2023 to recall all ambassadors from the country’s 109 foreign missions—comprising 76 embassies, 22 high commissions and 11 consulates—as part of what the government described as a “comprehensive diplomatic review.”

Since then, most missions have been headed by chargés d’affaires or senior consular officers with limited authority to represent the country in formal negotiations.

“The truth is that most foreign governments do not give the same regard to chargés d’affaires as they do to ambassadors,” a senior Foreign Service source had told our correspondent earlier.

The official explained, “It is not that they are not important but they are bureaucrats. They cannot make binding commitments on behalf of the country. At a time like this, we have many diplomatic demands; it is crucial that ambassadors be appointed. It won’t be long before the President does it.”

Another official who spoke to our correspondent on Tuesday stressed that President Tinubu did not want the move to appear as a direct response to recent comments by United States President Donald Trump, who has threatened to halt aid and consider military action over alleged killings of Christians in Nigeria.

“The President didn’t give a day he would appoint ambassadors,” the source said, noting, “It will be ready soon. He also doesn’t want it to look like it is because of the Trump issue that he is rushing it.”

The push to conclude the ambassadorial appointments comes amid the recent diplomatic tension following comments by U.S. President Donald Trump, who threatened military intervention in Nigeria over alleged killing of Christians.

Trump, in a post on his social media platform on Friday, October 31, announced that he was labelling Nigeria a “Country of Particular Concern.”

Hours later, he announced that he had instructed congressional Republicans to “immediately look into this matter” and report back to him.

On November 1, Trump said he had ordered the U.S. Department of War to “prepare for possible action” in Nigeria over the country’s alleged killing of Christians.

He wrote, “If the Nigerian Government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the U.S.A. will immediately stop all aid and assistance to Nigeria, and may very well go into that now disgraced country, ‘guns-a-blazing,’ to completely wipe out the Islamic terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities.”

He added that the military offensive would be “fast, vicious, and sweet.”

In April 2025, The PUNCH reported that the Federal Government had concluded vetting of nominees and completed security clearances. However, the appointment stalled due to funding shortages, sources confirmed.

At the time, officials said over $1bn was needed to settle accumulated arrears of foreign service officers, replace ageing diplomatic vehicles, renovate embassies, and cover operational overheads. The funding crunch, coupled with internal political considerations, slowed the process.

Tinubu had earlier admitted the complexity of balancing political and professional interests in the appointment.

“It’s not easy stitching those names,” Tinubu told members of The Buhari Organisation led by former Governor of Nasarawa State, Senator Tanko Almakura, who visited him at the State House, Abuja, on September 2, 2025.

“I couldn’t appoint everybody at once, and thank you for your patience. I still have some slots for ambassadorial positions that so many people are craving for,” he added.

On November 3, Presidency officials told our correspondent that the President has since ordered a complete “cleanup” of the original list to remove nominees who have died, retired or taken up other appointments, as well as to replace career officers who now have less than one year left in service.

Credit: PUNCH