ENUGU, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)- President Bola Tinubu will later this month embark on a historic State Visit to the United Kingdom following an invitation from King Charles III, marking the first time in 37 years that a Nigerian leader will be received in Britain with full state honours.
Tinubu will be accompanied by his wife, First Lady Oluremi Tinubu, and will be hosted by King Charles and Queen Camilla at Windsor Castle from March 18 to 19, 2026, the British Royal Family confirmed on Sunday.
In a statement posted on its official X account, the palace said the Nigerian President had formally accepted the monarch’s invitation, adding that the King and Queen would host the visit at Windsor Castle.
Presidential spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, also confirmed the development, describing it as a landmark moment in Nigeria–United Kingdom relations.
“First state visit of a Nigerian leader to the UK in 37 years confirmed. President Tinubu and First Lady Remi Tinubu to be hosted by King Charles and Queen Camilla from 18th March to 19th March 2026,” Onanuga wrote.
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The visit comes amid growing diplomatic engagement between London and Abuja, following the conclusion of a strategic partnership agreement in November 2024 aimed at strengthening cooperation in the areas of economic development, immigration management and security.
President Tinubu’s visit will be the first full State Visit by a Nigerian leader since 1989, when then military president, General Ibrahim Babangida, was hosted by Queen Elizabeth II. Babangida’s four-day visit included accommodation at a royal residence and a State Banquet at Buckingham Palace.
Only two other Nigerian leaders have undertaken formal State Visits to the United Kingdom; General Yakubu Gowon in June 1973 and President Shehu Shagari in 1981.
Although several Nigerian presidents have visited Britain since 1989, including Olusegun Obasanjo, Umaru Musa Yar’Adua and Muhammadu Buhari, those trips were classified as private, working or official visits and did not carry the ceremonial status of a State Visit. Buhari attended King Charles III’s coronation in 2023 under a non-state designation.
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Since assuming office in May 2023, President Tinubu has met King Charles III twice. Their first meeting took place in December 2023 on the sidelines of the COP28 Climate Summit in Dubai, while a second private meeting was held in September 2024 at Buckingham Palace, where discussions centred on climate change and global security.
The UK trip adds to a growing list of high-level foreign engagements undertaken by the President since his inauguration. These include a state visit to Türkiye in January 2026, where he met President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and signed nine strategic agreements covering defence, energy and trade; a state visit to Brazil in August 2025 at the invitation of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva; and an official visit to China in September 2024 during the Forum on ChinagAfrica Cooperation.
Other official engagements have taken Tinubu to Equatorial Guinea for talks on maritime security and gas cooperation, the Netherlands for the Nigerian-Dutch Business and Investment Forum, Qatar at the invitation of Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, and the Benin Republic as a special guest at its 63rd Independence Anniversary.