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President Bola Tinubu has approved the diplomatic postings of four ambassadorial nominees, including the appointment of Kayode Are as Nigeria’s ambassador-designate to the United States.
The postings were confirmed in a statement issued on Thursday by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy.
Are, a former Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS) and an indigene of Ogun State, was named among the nominees whose assignments have now been finalised.
According to the statement, Ayodele Oke has been posted to France, while Amin Dalhatu, former Nigerian ambassador to South Korea, was appointed High Commissioner-designate to the United Kingdom. Former Kebbi State Governor, Usman Dakingari, was designated as Nigeria’s ambassador to Turkey.
President Tinubu is expected to embark on a state visit to Turkey next week.
In a memo addressed to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the president directed the ministry to formally notify the host governments of the ambassador-designates in line with established diplomatic procedures.
“Oke, Are, and Dalhatu were confirmed as non-career ambassadors last month,” the statement added.
Speaking on the appointments, Sani Bello, senator representing Niger North and chairman of the Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs, said the nominees were thoroughly screened and found suitable for diplomatic responsibilities.
The three nominees were part of the first batch of ambassadorial candidates forwarded by President Tinubu to the Senate in November, following nearly two years of vacancies in several Nigerian diplomatic missions abroad.
Later that same month, the president submitted an additional list of 32 ambassadorial nominees for Senate confirmation. Notable names on the list included Reno Omokri, former presidential aide; Mahmood Yakubu, former chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC); Femi Fani-Kayode, former minister of aviation; and Fatima Florence Ajimobi, former First Lady of Oyo State.
In December, the Senate confirmed a total of 64 nominees, bringing the overall number of confirmed ambassadors to 67, including Oke, Are, and Dalhatu.
Of the confirmed nominees, 34 are career ambassadors—professional diplomats who rose through the foreign service ranks—while 33 are non-career ambassadors, typically appointed based on political considerations, expertise, or public service experience.
At the time, Onanuga noted that the confirmed ambassadors would be deployed to countries with which Nigeria maintains strong and strategic bilateral relations, including China, India, South Korea, Canada, Mexico, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, South Africa, and Kenya, as well as to permanent missions such as the United Nations, UNESCO, and the African Union.
