President Bola Tinubu has ended his vacation and is preparing to return to Nigeria, on Tuesday, September 16, 2025, marking the end of his 15th foreign trip in 2025.
The Nigerian leader’s working retreat in Europe, which began on September 4, had drawn attention from Nigerians amid ongoing national challenges, including economic reforms and security concerns.
The presidency had framed Tinubu’s 10-day vacation to France and the United Kingdom as part of his annual leave, allowing time for reflection on policy priorities.
Meanwhile, in a press statement issued on Monday, September 15, 2025, the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, confirmed that Tinubu has ended his vacation.
He said: “President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has ended his work vacation ahead of schedule and will return to Abuja on Tuesday, September 16, 2025, to resume official duties.
“The President had departed Nigeria for France on September 4, 2025, to spend part of his annual holiday. He was initially scheduled to split the period between France and the United Kingdom.
“While in Paris, Tinubu held a private luncheon with French President Emmanuel Macron at the Élysée Palace.
“Both leaders reviewed key areas of bilateral cooperation and agreed to strengthen partnerships in pursuit of mutual prosperity and global stability.”
Pan-Atlantic Kompass reports that this trip is Tinubu’s seventh visit to France since becoming Nigeria’s President in May 2023 and his first since the BRICS summit in July and August’s TICAD9 in Japan.
As Tinubu ended his vacation, it was also gathered that he had undertaken 15 international trips across 11 countries in the first nine months of 2025.
These include high-level summits, bilateral engagements, presidential inaugurations, and annual leaves.
Tinubu’s first foreign trip came on January 6, with his diplomatic itinerary including a visit to Accra, the capital of the Republic of Ghana, to attend the inauguration of President-elect John Dramani Mahama on January 7.
He was in the United Arab Emirates to attend the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Summit from January 12 – 16, where he held side meetings with Gulf investors and officials on trade and energy cooperation.
From January 27-28, he visited Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, to participate in the Africa Heads of State Energy Summit.
February saw the President travel to France before attending the 37th African Union Summit in Ethiopia, where he joined other African leaders in discussions on regional security, climate adaptation, and continental trade integration under the AfCFTA.
From April 2-21, Tinubu embarked on a two-week working visit that included France and the United Kingdom.
In mid-May, the President travelled to Vatican City, attending the historic inauguration of Pope Leo XIV in Rome.
From June 28 to July 4, Tinubu undertook a landmark state visit to Saint Lucia, where he addressed CARICOM leaders in Castries.
From Saint Lucia, he proceeded to Brazil, arriving in Rio de Janeiro for the 17th BRICS Summit (July 4–7).
The Brazil visit continued into August, with President Tinubu returning for a two-day state visit.
This came after he visited Japan in the same month to attend the Tokyo International Conference on African Development, where he pitched Nigeria’s investment readiness to Japanese multinationals and met Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on maritime security and digital infrastructure.
Before he arrived in Japan, Tinubu and his entourage stopped over in Dubai, UAE, on August 15 and arrived in Yokohama early in the morning on August 18.
It was his second visit to the Gulf state within the year.
In September, he again embarked on a working vacation to the United Kingdom and France, his third visit to Paris this year and second to London.
Meanwhile, opposition parties have criticised the President over what they described as the persistent foreign trips.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), in its reaction, claimed that Tinubu is allegedly wasting taxpayers’ money on foreign trips.
This was made known by the PDP Deputy Youth Leader, Timothy Osadolor.
Osadolor stated: “I think the president’s frequent trips are highly insensitive, and they show a lack of faith in our national health care system because the reason he is travelling is for medical tourism.
“Imagine the billions of naira that will be spent as estacodes and used in paying frivolous charges that those foreign hospitals might have given to him, as well as the travel expenses for him, his caregivers, and the hangers-on that will have gone on this trip. Imagine the state of our local health facilities in this country.
“Let’s assume he is not even interested in giving all Nigerians affordable quality health care or building world-class facilities in different zones of the country. The Aso Rock Clinic, where we have billions of naira voted into its budget annually, year after year — what is the state of that facility?
“We have never heard that the president went to Aso Rock Villa to take a check-up or to take an injection, but rather we hear he has jetted to France.”
Also, Labour Party’s National Legal Adviser, Kehinde Edun, said: “It shows that the government lacks the capacity to deal with the situation we have on our hands. The situation is tense. We have problems everywhere. But it’s like the president is always seeking ways to escape. At every slightest opportunity, he always wants to escape. We have not really seen him sitting down and working. Unfortunately, we are where we are.
“This is a situation where there is so much hunger, poverty, and pain in the land. Yet, all the people see here is their president travelling every time. Brazil today, America tomorrow. Now he is off again to France on vacation. Can Nigerians afford to go on vacation with the kind of pain and suffering in the land? The president should show that he is with the people.”
