Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, announced that Nigeria has not appointed a new set of ambassadors to its missions this year due to financial constraints.
This statement was made in Abuja during a ministerial briefing marking the one-year anniversary of President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
Tuggar explained that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been underfunded as a result of significant macroeconomic challenges, including the depreciation of the naira, inflation, and national debt.
He attributed part of the issue to the economic situation the new administration inherited. President Tinubu has focused on eliminating subsidies, aiming to stop subsidizing consumption and instead support production.
However, this shift, along with other economic challenges, has led to inadequate funding for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
He remarked, “Part of the problem is the situation the new administration came and met. As you know, President Tinubu, when he came in, focused on removing subsidy.
The whole idea is to stop subsidising consumption and focus on subsidising production. At the same time, the government was also facing other challenges.”
Tuggar further noted that there was no point in sending out ambassadors without the necessary funds for their travel and effective operation, highlighting that financial issues were exploited by entities like Binance.
Despite these challenges, Ambassador Tuggar assured that President Tinubu is aware of the situation and intends to appoint ambassadors in the future.
He also addressed issues concerning the issuance of student visas to Nigerian students abroad, stating that negotiations are ongoing between Nigeria and the countries where these problems are prevalent.
It is important to note that upon taking office a year ago, President Bola Tinubu’s administration implemented significant reforms, such as the removal of fuel subsidies and the unification of the foreign exchange market.
These reforms led to a historic depreciation of the naira, with the local currency losing over 100% of its value and reaching approximately N1600 per dollar on the official market.
Despite some volatility in 2024, the forex market has shown relative stability in the past month, with the naira trading between N1200 and N1500.
Additionally, inflation hit a 28-year high of 33.69% in April 2024, with food inflation reaching 40.53%. These economic challenges, along with rising recurrent expenditures, have led President Tinubu to consider implementing the Oronsaye report, which aims to reduce the cost of governance and enhance public sector efficiency.
