The Federal Government has announced a suspension of public-funded foreign trips for a period of three months, effective from April 1.
The decision was conveyed through a circular posted by a presidential aide on social media platform X, stating the need for government officials to focus on their mandates amidst rising travel expenses borne by ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) of the government.
According to the circular, any official planning to embark on an essential foreign assignment must obtain presidential approval at least two weeks prior to the trip.
The circular reads: “Mr. President has concerns about the rising cost of travel expenses borne by ministries, departments and agencies of government as well as the growing need for cabinet members and heads of MDAs to focus on their respective mandates for effective service delivery.
“Considering the current economic challenges and the need for responsible fiscal management, I am writing to communicate Mr. President’s directive to place a temporary ban on all public-funded international trips for all Federal Government officials at all levels, for an initial period of three months from April 1, 2024.
“All government officials who intend to go on any public-funded international trip must seek and obtain presidential approval at least two (2) weeks prior to embarking on any such trip, which must be deemed absolutely necessary.”
This latest directive follows an earlier order from the President to reduce the number of personnel accompanying officials on both local and foreign trips.
The First Lady, Vice-President, and ministers are among those affected by the policy, with strict limits placed on the number of aides allowed to accompany them.
During local trips, the President was allowed a maximum of 25 aides, while the limit for foreign trips was set at 20. Similarly, the First Lady and Vice-President were each permitted to have five accompanying persons during their travels.
For domestic trips, the First Lady was authorized to have up to 10 aides, whereas the Vice-President could have up to 15. The Vice-President’s wife was allocated 10 aides for her domestic travels.
Ministers were instructed not to travel abroad with more than four individuals, while heads of federal agencies were limited to two accompanying persons on their trips.
