BREAKING: UK appoints Richard Montgomery as new High Commissioner to Nigeria

The United Kingdom government has appointed Richard Hugh Montgomery as the new British High Commissioner to Nigeria.

The office of the high commissioner is the UK government’s representative in a Commonwealth nation.

Montgomery will replace Catriona Laing as the UK envoy in Nigeria from April 2023 as announced in a statement on Tuesday.

Montgomery succeeds Laing who has served in the capacity as UK’s representative in Nigeria since 2018.

An high commissioner as a diplomat is responsible for the direction and work of the consulate, such as political relations, trade and investment, press and cultural relations, and visa and consular services.

The statement said Laing will be transferred to another diplomatic service appointment.

Montgomery served as the counsellor (development) and head of office, Department for International Development (DFID), Abuja, from 2009-2013.

He holds a Ph.D in social anthropology from the University of Cambridge, alongside other research-related qualifications from GKW Consult Mannheim and Manchester University.

The diplomat was, most recently, the UK executive director for the World Bank Group in Washington.

He has also held executive development roles in Zambia, Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan.