52 foreign trips, 261 days abroad and ₦37.6bn spent — Tinubu’s travel record revealed as Nigerians count the cost

• GovSpend records show the Presidency spent ₦37.64 billion on presidential trips and travel-related expenses between June 2023 and April 2026.

• Tinubu's latest European vacation brings his total foreign trips to 52, with about 261 days spent outside Nigeria since taking office.

• Records also show ₦700.7 million worth of foreign exchange was released for five overseas trips involving First Lady Oluremi Tinubu between 2023 and 2024.

• While Atiku Abubakar criticised the President's latest trip, the Presidency insisted Tinubu deserves the break to "refuel" ahead of the 2027 election campaign.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's latest trip to Europe has once again sparked conversations about the cost of governance, especially at a time many Nigerians are battling rising food prices, expensive transport fares and worsening economic hardship.

The President left Abuja on Sunday for what the Presidency described as a three-week annual working vacation, with London in the United Kingdom as his first stop. His spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, said Tinubu is expected to return and immediately join campaigns ahead of the January 2027 general election.

Interestingly, the trip came just days after Vice President Kashim Shettima returned from his own two-week vacation.

While the Presidency did not reveal Tinubu's full travel plans or the other European countries he may visit, an analysis of official travel records and flight data shows this latest journey is his 52nd foreign trip since becoming President on May 29, 2023.

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According to expenditure records published by GovSpend, a platform that tracks government spending in Nigeria, the Presidency spent N37.64 billion on presidential trips, travel logistics, foreign exchange transactions and other related expenses between June 2023 and April 2026.

The breakdown showed:

• 2023 (June-December): ₦9.19 billion

• 2024: ₦25.27 billion

• 2025: ₦2.71 billion

• January-April 2026: ₦477.45 million

The highest spending came in 2024, when over ₦25 billion was spent, with a significant amount going into foreign exchange allocations and funding for the Presidential Air Fleet.

Records also show several large forex transactions shortly after Tinubu assumed office, including millions of naira used to purchase foreign currencies for official trips, alongside funding released for the Presidential Air Fleet.

Data analysed from official records indicates Tinubu has now visited at least 30 countries and spent approximately 261 days outside Nigeria since taking office.

France has remained his most visited destination, followed by the United Kingdom, while the United Arab Emirates also appears several times on his travel schedule.

His trips have included international summits, state visits, investment meetings, diplomatic engagements, bilateral talks and working vacations.

Some of the countries visited include France, the UK, India, the United States, Saudi Arabia, China, Brazil, Japan, Kenya, Rwanda, Qatar, Ethiopia, Ghana, Türkiye, South Africa, Senegal and the Vatican.

GovSpend records also revealed that $553,884, valued at about ₦700.7 million based on exchange rates at the time, was released for overseas trips involving First Lady Oluremi Tinubu between 2023 and 2024.

The funds covered trips to the United States, Mozambique, Ethiopia, the United Kingdom and France.

However, the records only covered foreign exchange purchases and did not state the full cost of each trip, the number of officials who travelled or the purpose of the visits.

No travel-related forex payments for the First Lady were listed for 2025 or 2026.

Reacting to the spending, President of the Transparency and Accountability Group, Comrade Ayo Ologun, questioned the legal basis for funding official foreign trips involving the First Lady, arguing that the Office of the First Lady is not recognised by the Nigerian Constitution.

"Because her office is not recognised by the law, and there is nothing like the office of the wife of the President... if it is established that public money was spent on supposed official travels, the question should be: what is the duty?" he said.

He further added: "Where did that amount of money come from? If it is spent on the wife of the President, that is abuse of power."

Ologun also called for an investigation into the spending and the legal authority under which such funds were released.

Former Vice President and ADC presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, also criticised Tinubu for travelling abroad at a time Nigeria is facing economic and security challenges.

He wrote: "Nigeria may not be facing a constitutional vacuum today, but there is a disturbing vacuum of political leadership."

He continued: "Leadership is not merely the constitutional right to occupy an office; it is the judgment to know when your country needs you at home."

Atiku argued that while Nigerians struggle with inflation, insecurity and high transport costs, the President chose to spend another three weeks overseas.

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The Presidency, however, defended the President's decision.

Speaking to journalists before Tinubu departed, Special Adviser on Media and Public Communication, Sunday Dare, described the leave as necessary after months of intensive governance.

He said: "The President is proceeding on a well-deserved leave."

Dare added: "At this point, it's important that the President also refuels."

According to him, Tinubu will continue to receive security briefings and updates from ministers and other top government officials throughout the vacation, insisting that governance would continue despite his absence.