The Nigerian government has started the screening process for candidates nominated to represent the country in various diplomatic missions.

This move is aimed at filling the numerous vacant positions in Nigeria’s 76 embassies and 22 high commissions.

As part of the thorough vetting procedure, nominees have been directed to go to the closest Department of State Services (DSS) office for security checks.

To support a comprehensive background check, some nominees have also been required to submit their individual educational and professional records.

Former South-East governors Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi and Okezie Ikpeazu have already gone through the screening process for diplomatic positions, according to a trustworthy source who spoke to Vanguard.

The list of nominees who have finished their vetting also includes former presidential adviser Reno Omokri and Shehu Sani, a recent addition to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Additionally, former Lagos State Deputy Governor Femi Pedro and former Aviation Minister Femi Fani-Kayode have been vetted and cleared for their potential diplomatic assignments.

There was a major void in diplomatic leadership at several Nigerian embassies overseas after President Bola Tinubu recalled all of the country’s ambassadors, career and non-career, in September 2023.

In March 2025, over two years later, the president declared that the recalled ambassadors’ replacements will be selected “very soon.”

Yusuf Tuggar, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, has revealed that the shortage of funding is the reason for the delay in the appointment of new ambassadors.

Foreign officials and other stakeholders are worried about the leadership void in Nigeria’s diplomatic missions as a result of this financing shortage.

It is anticipated that the Federal Government would shortly announce the new diplomats and their respective assignments as a result of the ongoing screening procedure.