By Friday Idachaba, Abuja
The Federal Government is exploring a strategic partnership with the Pan African Psychology Union (PAPU) to mainstream mental health, emotional intelligence and psychological leadership into Nigeria’s foreign service training and diplomatic practice.
The initiative is aimed at strengthening the capacity of Nigerian diplomats and public officials to manage complex regional challenges, build trust across borders and promote stronger cooperation among African countries.
The Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye, disclosed this in Abuja when the President of PAPU, Professor Andrew Zamani, led a delegation on a courtesy visit to the ministry.
The meeting brought together senior PAPU officials, representatives of the Nigerian Psychological Association, FCT Chapter, led by its Chairman, Adejoh Victor, and members of the Nigerian Association of Clinical Psychologists.
Discussions centred on deepening collaboration in mental health, leadership development and diplomatic engagement, with particular attention to the adoption of the “Bridging Leadership” approach in the foreign affairs sector.
The approach seeks to strengthen staff capacity through psychological well-being, emotional intelligence, self-awareness and collaborative leadership.
The participants noted that the growing complexity of security, political and socio-economic challenges confronting Africa requires leaders who are emotionally resilient, culturally sensitive and capable of building trust among institutions, communities and countries.
Enikanolaiye reaffirmed the Federal Government’s commitment to strengthening relations among African countries through inclusive leadership, mutual trust and strategic partnerships.
He said effective diplomacy requires not only technical competence but also sound mental health, self-awareness and the ability to foster meaningful collaboration among governments, institutions and citizens.
The minister welcomed closer cooperation between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, PAPU and the Nigerian Psychological Association, saying such partnerships could produce programmes to improve the well-being, leadership capacity and professional effectiveness of foreign service officers and other public officials.
‘Psychology critical to peace, governance’
Earlier, Zamani said PAPU was committed to promoting psychology as a strategic instrument for peacebuilding, conflict prevention, good governance and sustainable development across Africa.
The professor of Clinical Psychology at Nasarawa State University, Keffi, urged African governments to engage credentialed psychologists in designing policies and programmes aimed at improving mental health, organisational effectiveness and leadership within public institutions, particularly agencies responsible for foreign affairs.
He advocated joint initiatives to develop trauma-informed, psychologically responsive and culturally relevant capacity-building programmes for diplomats and government officials.
Zamani said the proposed collaboration could contribute to stronger regional integration, more effective diplomatic engagement and improved psychosocial support systems across the continent.
The meeting ended with a shared commitment to positioning mental health and psychology as strategic pillars of public leadership, peacebuilding, regional cooperation and sustainable development in Africa.
The PAPU delegation included Prof Agatha Ogwo of Baze University, Abuja; Dr Simon Jurbe; Dr Ezekiel Onibiyo; Mary-Ann Ogbodo; Grace Edibo; Adeoluwa Olugbenge; Fagade; Charity Akor; Munirah Alhassan; and Olumide Adeyemi.