By Michael AMAJAMA
The United Kingdom has appointed Peter Vowles as the new British High Commissioner to Nigeria.
This was announced by the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office on Monday.
Vowles will succeed Dr Richard Montgomery CMG and is expected to take up the post in September 2026.
He currently serves as British High Commissioner to Zimbabwe, a position he has held since 2023.
A career diplomat with more than two decades of experience across Africa and Asia, Vowles has held several senior roles within the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and its predecessor, the Department for International Development.
He served as FCDO Transformation Director from 2022 to 2023 and as HM Ambassador to Myanmar between 2021 and 2022.
From 2018 to 2021, he was Director for Asia, Caribbean and Overseas Territories at DFID. Earlier, he worked as Country Director for DFID in Kenya from 2016 to 2018, Head of Programme Delivery from 2013 to 2016, and Deputy Country Director in the Democratic Republic of Congo from 2010 to 2013.
His other postings include Head of Global Partnerships in India from 2007 to 2010 and Governance and Security Team Leader in Afghanistan from 2006 to 2007.
Vowles joined DFID in 2006 after working as a Health and Development Consultant with Mott MacDonald from 2005 to 2006.
He previously served as Population and Health Programme Director in Bangladesh from 2003 to 2005 and as a World Bank Health Adviser in Bangladesh from 2002 to 2003.
His early career included the National Health Service Management Training Scheme from 2000 to 2002, Head of Projects at Raleigh International from 1999 to 2000, and various development roles in Zimbabwe, including Policy and Programme Manager with Students Partnership Worldwide from 1996 to 1999.
He also worked as a teacher with Zimbabwe’s Ministry of Education, Sports and Culture between 1992 and 1993.
The FCDO said the appointment underscores the UK’s continued diplomatic engagement with Nigeria ahead of Vowles’ assumption of duty later this year.
