President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has forwarded a fresh list of 32 ambassadorial nominees to the Senate, marking a significant expansion of his diplomatic corps just days after submitting an initial batch of three candidates for screening.
In two separate letters addressed to Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Tinubu urged the upper chamber to accelerate the confirmation of 15 career diplomats and 17 non-career nominees, in what signals a recalibration of Nigeria’s foreign service architecture.
The Presidency noted that more ambassadorial nominations will be announced soon, a disclosure contained in the statement signed by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, dated November 29, 2025.
The new list reflects an increased push for gender inclusion, with four women nominated as career ambassadors and six women listed as non-career envoys to serve in strategic countries.
Among the prominent non-career nominees are Barrister Ogbonnaya Kalu from Abia; former presidential aide, Reno Omokri of Delta; former INEC chairman, Prof. Mahmud Yakubu; former Ekiti First Lady, Erelu Angela Adebayo; and former Enugu governor, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi.
Also named are Tasiu Musa Maigari, former Speaker of the Katsina State House of Assembly; Yakubu N. Gambo, a former Plateau State Commissioner; and a former Deputy Executive Secretary of UBEC. Others include former Plateau senator, Prof. Nora Ladi Daduut; ex-Lagos deputy governor, Otunba Femi Pedro; former aviation minister, Femi Fani-Kayode; and Barrister Nkechi Linda Ufochukwu from Anambra.
The list further features Fatima Florence Ajimobi, former Oyo First Lady; former Lagos Commissioner, Lola Akande; ex-Adamawa Senator, Grace Bent; former Abia governor, Okezie Ikpeazu; Senator Jimoh Ibrahim of Ondo; and former envoy to the Holy See, Ambassador Paul Oga Adikwu.
On the side of career diplomats, the nominees include; Enebechi Monica Okwuchukwu (Abia), Yakubu Nyaku Danladi (Taraba), Miamuna Ibrahim Besto (Adamawa), Musa Musa Abubakar (Kebbi), Syndoph Paebi Endoni (Bayelsa), Chima Geoffrey Lioma David (Ebonyi), and Mopelola Adeola-Ibrahim (Ogun).
Others are Abimbola Samuel Reuben (Ondo), Yvonne Ehinosen Odumah (Edo), Hamza Mohammed Salau (Niger), Ambassador Shehu Barde (Katsina), Ambassador Ahmed Mohammed Monguno (Borno), Ambassador Muhammad Saidu Dahiru (Kaduna), Ambassador Olatunji Ahmed Sulu Gambari (Kwara), and Ambassador Wahab Adekola Akande (Osun).
Once confirmed, the nominees are expected to be deployed to key global missions such as China, India, South Korea, Canada, Mexico, the UAE, Qatar, South Africa, and Kenya, as well as multilateral postings including the UN, UNESCO, and the African Union.
The new list comes on the heels of Tinubu’s earlier submission of Ambassador Ayodele Oke, Ambassador Amin Mohammed Dalhatu, and Retired Colonel Lateef Kayode Are, who are being considered for top-tier postings to the UK, USA, or France after Senate approval.
