The federal government has approved the release of Special Intervention Funds to cushion the hardship faced by officials of Nigeria’s foreign missions and consulates.
This was disclosed in a statement issued Monday by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’s spokesman, Kimiebi Ebienfa, which acknowledged the financial and operational constraints recently experienced by several of our Diplomatic and Consular Missions abroad.
Parts of the statement read: “The Ministry is not unaware of the restrictions that financial limitations have placed on the smooth running of the Missions, including the inability to pay salaries of locally recruited staff, financial obligations to service providers, rent to landlords, and the foreign service allowance to home-based officers.
“It is pertinent to state, however, that the Nigerian Diplomatic Missions are not immune to the economic situation at home and its attendant challenges to government operations. The financial situation in our Missions stems from budgetary limitations over the years, resulting in short allocations, which in turn have significantly impacted the optimal functioning of many of our Missions abroad, and the ability to deliver on their core diplomatic and consular mandates effectively.”
The Ministry, therefore, assured all Nigerians, both at home and abroad, and the international community, that the welfare of its staff and their families in the diaspora is of paramount importance to the current administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
It said further that the government is taking decisive and concrete steps to address the issue of fund allocation to all its missions abroad.
And to ensure that the monies remitted to the Missions are utilised judiciously and managed prudently in line with this Administration’s financial discipline policy, the Ministry set up a committee to assess and confirm the debt profile of the affected Missions with a view to ensuring that payments are justifiable and carried out based on equity and fairness to all those affected.
“Based on responses from Missions and documentary evidence provided, more than 80 per cent of the available funds have been cleared for payments, with priority given to service providers, salaries of locally recruited staff and arrears of claims due to officers, respectively.
“The Ministry has also engaged the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation in obtaining refunds for the shortfall in Missions’ allocations in the 2024 fiscal year due to foreign exchange differentials associated with the new monetary policy and the harmonisation of exchange rates.
“To mitigate its impact, the government of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, has graciously approved the settlement of the shortfall. Consequently, the first tranche has already been remitted to all Missions, with some having confirmed receipt,” the statement added.
The Ministry said further that Second Semester Allocations have also been approved, even as it engages the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank of Nigeria to facilitate the prompt release of Personnel and Overhead Cost Allocations to all Missions starting this week to clear outstanding Allowances and further alleviate their financial situation. With these efforts, Missions have begun to stabilise.
“In the same vein, the Ministry is also working diligently to develop a sustainable financial model for funding our missions abroad, which includes exploring innovative solutions and efficiency measures to ensure long-term operational stability. These efforts are integral to the broader public sector financial reforms being implemented by the federal government, which are aimed at enhancing fiscal governance and ensuring the effective allocation of resources.
“The Ministry recognises the resilience and dedication of its diplomatic staff who continue to discharge their duties with commendable patriotism under these difficult circumstances. We also thank the host governments, service providers and our international partners for their understanding and continued cooperation. The Nigerian government remains unwavering in its commitment to providing the necessary support to all its Missions abroad to enable them to function at their full capacity,” the statement said.
The Government expressed confidence that the current challenges are temporary and will be overcome through the concerted efforts of this administration.
It reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to robust and dynamic international diplomacy and every Nigerian citizen’s unwavering protection and welfare worldwide.
