Nigeria is not closing or merging any of its 109 international diplomatic missions globally, the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Sola Enikanolaiye, has said.

Enikanolaiye said part of the government’s foreign policy initiative was customised special charters issued to every head of mission and every ambassador when they were deployed, in line with the Federal Government’s desire to achieve a $1 trillion economy.

The Minister of State, in an interview with The Nation, said the Federal Government is retooling the diplomatic missions, which include 76 embassies, 22 high commissions and 11 consulates, to ensure that they are better able to deliver on the Renewed Hope Agenda of government, promoting and defending Nigeria’s national interests.

On the closure of some embassies, he said: “My view is that closure of embassies neither saves costs nor advances the strategic objective of government. On the contrary, it costs more to close.

“Second, it damages relations. Relations that have been built over decades are unwittingly damaged. Don’t forget diplomacy is about reciprocity.

“You have a country that maintains a mission in Abuja, some have consulates in Lagos, and then you decide to close your own embassy. How do you want those countries to feel? Countries behave like human beings. They don’t take slights or snobbery for granted.”

The Minister added: “You are going to be creating more offence than you had wanted to see by closing or merging. When you close, and you think you are saving costs, the costs you may have saved do not – studies have been concluded – come to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to enable us to run other missions that will remain. Those are the facts about closure and merger.

“It is, therefore, not surprising. Governments has been a little bit reticent in going for closures and mergers. We believe there are other ways we can raise funds to better support our missions abroad.

“We are looking at those creative and innovative means of ensuring sustainable funding mechanisms for Nigerian missions abroad. It is still an ongoing discussion. We need the President’s approval.

Nigerians will be surprised when this comes out in the open. We believe the missions can be run most sustainably with better, innovative and creative funding mechanisms that ensure that we can meet all our obligations.”

He added that a new directive by the Federal Government requires every head of mission and every ambassador to be given customised special charters, the implementation of which is being monitored.

He said: “Part of the government’s foreign policy process is to give customised special charters to every head of mission and every ambassador. What does this special charter do? It tells you, you are going to Germany. These are your priorities. The special charters are signed by Mr. President, just like the letter of credence.

“It will tell you these are your priorities in Germany. A, B, C, D, E, F. It varies from mission to mission, naturally, because the conditions are not the same. What would be a priority to an ambassador in Berlin will not be the priority to an ambassador in Niamey, for example.

“Or indeed, an ambassador in Brazil will be different from the ambassador in South Africa. That’s the way it is done. These special charters have just been concluded.

“Periodically, we will be asking the ambassador in Berlin, how far have you gone with your priority number one, which is attraction of foreign direct investment? How much have you been able to harness from Germany?

“We will be asking the person in Niamey, what have you done about the multinational joint task force? In Brazil, we will be asking what you have done about membership of BRICS? It’s going to vary like that. (The Nation)

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