President Tinubu had nominated Tegbe and Enikanolaiye to fill the vacancies, and both nominees were subsequently cleared by the Senate on May 6, 2026.
President Bola Tinubu, on Monday, June 8, 2026, swore in Mr Joseph Olasunkanmi Tegbe as the new Minister of Power and Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye as the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs.
According to a statement issued by the Presidency, the appointments followed the resignations of former Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, and former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, who left their positions to pursue political ambitions.
President Tinubu had nominated Tegbe and Enikanolaiye to fill the vacancies, and both nominees were subsequently cleared by the Senate on May 6, 2026.
Tegbe, an indigene of Ibadan in Oyo State, is described as a fiscal, economic, and institutional reform strategist with more than 35 years of experience spanning the public and private sectors.
He holds a First Class degree in Civil Engineering from Obafemi Awolowo University, as well as Master’s degrees in Business Administration and Public Administration from institutions in Switzerland and Birmingham, respectively.
Before his appointment, Tegbe served as Senior Partner and Head of Advisory Services at KPMG Africa, where he was involved in major public sector reforms and policy implementation initiatives.
His professional engagements have included work with the Nigerian Communications Commission, Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading, Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, Federal Inland Revenue Service, Shell, Huawei, General Electric, MTN and Odu’a Group
The new Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Enikanolaiye, hails from Igbagun in Kogi State.
He graduated with a First Class degree in Political Science from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, where he also received the Dean’s Prize as the best graduating student in his faculty.
He later obtained a Master’s degree in International Law and Diplomacy with distinction from the University of Lagos.
Enikanolaiye joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in August 1982 and rose through the ranks to become Permanent Secretary of the ministry in 2016.
He retired from the civil service in August 2017 after 35 years of service.
During his diplomatic career, he served in several Nigerian missions abroad, including postings in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; Belgrade, Serbia; Ottawa, Canada; and London, United Kingdom.
His final foreign assignment was as Nigeria’s Head of Mission in New Delhi, India.
He is also a recipient of several national honours and merit awards, including the Presidential Civil Service Merit Award, the Presidential Distinguished Public Service Career Award, and recognition as a Distinguished Fellow of the National Defence College.
Prior to his latest appointment, Enikanolaiye served as Senior Special Assistant to President Tinubu on Foreign Affairs and International Relations in the Office of the Chief of Staff to the President.
The appointments come as the Tinubu administration seeks to fill key positions in its cabinet following the exit of the former ministers ahead of the 2027 general elections.
