When some posit that His Excellency, Hon. Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Tuggar is a born diplomat, few are won’t to disagree given the seasoned technocrat’s mien, disposition and accustomed personality traits. Calm, comported, refined, confident and composed, Hon Maitama Tuggar, the Honourable Minister of Foreign Affairs is adept at consensus building, inclusivity and accomodation with all persons, opinions and perspectives irrespective of ethnic, religious, linguistic or partisan affiliations as far as they are geared towards moving the Foreign Ministry and the nation forward in all positive ramifications. He speaks softly but firmly and leaves no one in doubt as to his direction, focus or purpose and has a refreshing tendency to transform any office or position he occupies for the better in the crucial scheme of things. No stranger to the political, diplomatic or corporate spectrum for that matter, Amb Yusuf Tuggar has held forth as Ambassador, Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Nigeria to the Federal Republic of Germany from 2017 to 2023, during which period he concluded several diplomatic endeavours and investment enterprises between Nigeria and Germany including the initiation of repatriations for 1,130 lost Benin artefacts from the German government, leading to the return of 22 Benin Bronze looted artefacts valued at over €100,000,000. Amb Yusuf Tuggar was also instrumental to the establishment of the Nigeria Presidential Power Initiative/Siemens Power Projects, the Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL) & Petkus Technologie GmbH agreement amongst others.
After making his mark in the diplomatic front, it came as little surprise that an appreciative President Bola Tinubu appointed Amb. Yusuf Tuggar as Minister of Foreign Affairs in August 2023, a development that drew considerable commendation and approbation within and outside the diplomatic community. With characteristic alacrity, a dynamic Amb Yusuf Tuggar has recalibrated the foreign policy thrust of the current administration around his 4D Diplomacy approach centred on development, democracy, demography and diaspora. Amb Yusuf Tuggar’s vision is to place Nigeria at the apex of global and regional decision making and he has assured that a new foreign policy document is in the offing anytime soon. In the ECOWAS subregion, Hon Yusuf Tuggar faced a tough challenge with the Niger Republic coup that saw the country joining forces with neighbouring Mali and Burkina Faso to defy ECOWAS diktat on a number of issues even purportedly pulling out of the regional body. However, an astute Hon Yusuf Tuggar has spearheaded a rapprochement of sorts with the Niger military junta that saw a lowering of tensions, the reopening of the borders and the prevention of regional conflict involving ECOWAS and Niger Republic. A multi-faceted approach by Hon Yusuf Tuggar envisions a foreign policy focus on export diversification, jobs, energy transition, diaspora welfare, regional leadership, foreign investment, climate adaptation and security cooperation. On the last point, Hon Yusuf Tuggar has gone the whole hog in pushing for increased security cooperation, co-ordination and cohesiveness amongst the Sahelian countries to combat the scourge of Boko Haram, ISWAP and other lSIS- affiliated terrorist groups. As he has sounded times without number a safe, stable and prosperous Sahel equals to a safe, stable and prosperous Nigeria which equally translates to a safe, stable and prosperous West African subregion. Thus he has advocated for the continuing funding and logistical support of the Multinational Joint Task Force operating in the Lake Chad Basin to deter and defeat the assorted insurgent and terrorist networks operating there. The revolutionary concept of Hon Yusuf Tuggar’s foreign policy agenda revolves around democracy, to engage with like minded democracies around the world as well as autocratic regimes to persuade them to become more democratic. Demography: being the prospective third largest country in the world, there is a dire need to create jobs for the teeming population through partnering with other countries in the digital technology sphere, for instance Nigeria has attracted over $1.4 billion of investment from India recently. Development, of the nation’s industrial, economic, technological, agricultural and manufacturing sectors through foreign partnerships. Finally, engagement with Nigeria’s large diaspora and catering to their welfare as well as providing services to other nations through the Technical Aid Corps and Peace Corps programs. Indeed Hon Yusuf Tuggar has an onerous brief which he is capable of executing to the letter given his track record of performance in the corporate sector and as Honourable Member representing Gamawa Federal Constituency in the 6th National Assembly wherein he constantly and consistently delivered crucial dividends of democracy to his beloved people. Indeed an erudite, resourceful, competent, purposeful and innovative Hon Amb. Yusuf Maitama Tuggar has done it before and will do it again to the Glory of the Almighty God.
–HON ALIYU IBRAHIM GEBI, MEMBER, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ( 2011 – 2015 ).
