ICJ Election: Minister unveils Nigeria’s candidate in landmark diplomatic push

 

Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, has officially presented Dr. Taoheed Olufemi Elias as Nigeria’s nominee for election to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the United Nations’ principal judicial organ, with voting set to take place on November 12, 2025.

Established in 1945, the ICJ serves as the UN’s top court for resolving legal disputes between sovereign states.

Tuggar described Dr. Elias — an accomplished international lawyer and current ad hoc judge at the ICJ — as a “respected figure in international law with a distinguished record of legal scholarship.”

According to the minister, this marks “a turning point for Nigeria,” noting that it represents the country’s most determined diplomatic effort in over three decades to reclaim a seat on the ICJ bench.

The foreign affairs minister further highlighted that Elias’s candidacy carries the aspirations of not only Nigeria but the entire ECOWAS sub-region, which has lacked representation on the ICJ since Judge Abdul Koroma of Sierra Leone concluded his tenure in 2011.