Presidency trims foreign mission staff

The Federal Government may have concluded plans to prune down the number of staff posted to serve in its various foreign missions across the world. ....


Nairanaijanews learnt that the proposed restructuring will see each mission having a maximum of three personnel instead of the current situation where there are as many as eight diplomats in each mission.

A source at the Presidency who disclosed this to Nairanaijanews, said the policy was meant to cut cost and ensure that Nigeria retained only the few hands that could man the vital areas of the diplomatic service. The Presidency, our source said, has already sent memos to the relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) in preparation to the takeoff of the policy. However, New Telegraph gathered that the decision to cut down on the mission staff has been of concern to the affected MDAs.

The source revealed that the present composition of the mission staff included positions such as Defence Attaché, Immigration Officer, Political Attaché, Economic Attaché, Foreign Affairs Officer and NIA Officer, among others. It was learnt that due to the economic downturn in the country, the Presidency was looking at the MDAs whose activities were more relevant to the operations of the foreign missions.

According to our source, some of the MDAs have already started lobbying the Presidency through the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) to have their staff retained at the Foreign Missions. “This restructuring is going to affect the Foreign Missions.

The Presidency has sent memos to the affected MDAs on the need to reduce the number of staff attached to the Missions. “The Missions have up to eight attaché staff, but the Presidency has concluded plans to cut it down to three, a situation that has been a concern to the affected MDAs.

“If the said plan should work, what it means is that there might be one person to serve as Economic and Political Attaché; one person to serve as Defence, Immigration and NIA Officer and one other person, may be from the Foreign Affairs Ministry.

This might affect the productivity of the Foreign Missions since it would not be possible for them to employ staff from the host countries,” our source said. It would be recalled that the present administration, under the change mantra, had earlier pledged to restructure the system and cut down the cost of governance by reducing expenditure on salaries and allowances of its employees.

However, Director of Communication, Office of the SGF, Mr. Bolaji Adebiyi, said that he was not aware of any such move and advised that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs might be in a better position to respond to the issue. “At the moment, I don’t know about any such thing.

I don’t think there is anything like that in my office now, ” Adebiyi told New Telegraph. Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Clement Adukwu, said he had heard of a plan by the Federal Government to prune down the staff strength of the ministry, but has not received any official circular to that effect.

“I need to confirm from the permanent secretary’s office because we understand that the government is trimming down staff strength, but the ratio was not made known to anybody yet, and we have not gotten any circular from the Presidency to that effect yet. “I’m in the office and I’m not aware of that.

A committee was to look into that matter, but I don’t know whether they have released their report. But it is good you are telling me, I’m just hearing it from you. I will cross check and get back to you,” Adukwu said.