India and some other unnamed countries have reportedly declined to accept certain ambassadors-designate recently posted by President Bola Tinubu, citing diplomatic policies that discourage receiving envoys from governments with less than two years remaining in office.
Several senior officials in the Presidency and the foreign service disclosed the development on Tuesday, explaining that India has a policy against accepting ambassadors from administrations that are close to the end of their tenure.
One of the nominees affected by the development is career diplomat Ambassador Muhammad Dahiru, who was designated to serve in New Delhi, India.
The situation confirms an earlier report in February 2026 that some of Tinubu’s ambassadorial nominees might face rejection from host countries because of concerns about the limited time left in the current administration.
Sources familiar with the matter said the Federal Government has begun receiving diplomatic signals from New Delhi and possibly other capitals showing reluctance to grant agrément to some of the nominees.
Agrément is the formal approval a host country gives to a diplomat appointed by another country. It is a required step before an ambassador can begin work in the receiving country.
A Presidency official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue, said India had already communicated its position informally.
“They don’t accept an ambassador from an administration that has less than two years in office. So they are giving us that body language already,” the official said.
The source explained that the hesitation from some countries is not mainly about the individuals nominated but about the remaining tenure of the current administration.
The official said, “Some countries are reluctant to accept some people, not because of the individuals but because of time. They are already seeing the Tinubu government as an outgoing government.
“So their concern is that he has just one year left, so what if he doesn’t win the election? Another government may come and remove them.
“We also understand that some countries have this policy. Any ambassador from an administration that has less than a year or two in office will not get accepted. And one of such countries is India.”
Another senior foreign service official confirmed that India has such a policy but said Nigeria may still try to use its diplomatic relationship with the country to secure an exception.
“I know India has that policy. If you are less than two years to the end of the tenure, there will be difficulties accepting an ambassador. Maybe we can leverage our relationship with them to scale through that,” the official said.
The official added that some countries may also study Nigeria’s political situation before taking a final decision.
“Of course, there are those among them who gauge political tides, and some may see that this government can win the next election.
“Perhaps they may see that the election may not be so competitive because virtually everybody has moved towards the APC. They may say the chances for APC’s victory are high. That is one of the arguments the government will push forward,” the source added.
Officials said that although India is currently the only country confirmed to have such a policy, other countries could also follow similar diplomatic practices depending on their own conventions.
“India is the only one I can confirm to you for now. The others will be based on their conventions and practices. But the one I know for sure now is India. We will have to do a lot of convincing because they have a standing rule,” the official stated.
Meanwhile, another official revealed that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has already secured funds for the mandatory induction course for the ambassadors-designate, but the training schedule has not yet been fixed.
“On the training, we don’t know when for now. But the Foreign Ministry has the funds already to undertake the induction course,” the source said.
President Tinubu approved the posting of 65 ambassadors-designate and high commissioners to different countries and international organisations on Friday, March 6.
Those nominated include former Minister of Aviation Femi Fani-Kayode for Germany, presidential aide Reno Omokri for Mexico, former Katsina State Governor Lt. Gen. Abdulrahman Dambazzau for China, and Senator Jimoh Ibrahim as Permanent Representative to the United Nations.
So far, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has received agrément from only two countries, the United Kingdom for High Commissioner-designate Aminu Dalhatu and France for Ambassador Ayodele Oke, leaving the fate of the remaining 63 nominees uncertain.
