ABUJA, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)-The Federal Government has proposed spending more than N41bn in the 2026 budget on the renovation, furnishing and equipping of 109 Nigerian foreign missions.
The proposed allocation is intended to cover the rehabilitation of chanceries, ambassadors residences and staff quarters, as well as the purchase of office furniture and official vehicles for Nigeria’s diplomatic missions abroad.
A breakdown of the proposal indicates allocations of N374m for the Cairo mission; N380m for Cotonou; N387m for Freetown; N391m each for Port of Spain and New York; N389m for Ouagadougou and Nairobi; N383m for Malabo; N386m for Athens; N388m for Abidjan; N436m for Kingston; N384m for Lome; N376m for Beijing; N382m for Bamako; N405m for Lusaka; N513m for Algiers; N568m for Banjul; N379m for London; N387m for Johannesburg; and N385m for Kuwait, among others.
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The proposed figure represents a decrease from the N53bn approved for similar expenditures in the 2025 budget.
Since taking office in May 2023, President Bola Tinubu has initiated a review of Nigeria’s foreign policy, which included the recall of 83 ambassadors in September 2023.
However, the posting of new envoys has been delayed, largely due to financial limitations. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, has previously identified insufficient funding for embassy operations and ambassadorial take-off costs as key challenges.
In December 2025, Tinubu submitted an expanded list of 64 ambassadorial nominees to the Senate to fill long-standing vacancies and reposition Nigeria’s foreign missions.
Those confirmed by the Senate include 34 career ambassadors and high commissioners, alongside 30 non-career appointees.
At an end-of-year press briefing, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, stated that the newly appointed ambassadors are expected to assume their duties in 2026, a development anticipated to boost bilateral relations and strengthen Nigeria’s diplomatic presence globally.
