The Federal Government is making plans to release intervention funds to support its struggling foreign missions, sources in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have confirmed to The PUNCH.
This is in a bid to cushion the effects of months-long financial strain and avert further deterioration in Nigeria’s diplomatic presence abroad.
Sources said the intervention is part of efforts to alleviate the “dire financial challenges” affecting the country’s 109 diplomatic missions globally.
The measure came after reports revealed that over 450 foreign service officers have been unpaid for up to six months, forcing many into financial hardship and operational paralysis.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is sending intervention funds to cushion the effect of financial limitations,” a top official revealed.
Although the exact sum of the intervention package has not been disclosed, The PUNCH gathered that said the funds are intended to provide “temporary relief for missions unable to pay staff salaries, cover rent, settle debts with service providers, or deliver essential consular services to Nigerians abroad,” another source disclosed.
