By Favour Ulebor, Abuja

A former Nigerian Ambassador to the Netherlands, Dr. Eniola Ajayi, has unveiled her vision for the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), pledging to promote unity, universality of membership, and gender inclusion if elected the first female Director-General of the organisation.

The Federal Government recently nominated Dr. Ajayi for the position, with the final appointment expected to be made at the Thirtieth Session of the Conference of the States Parties in November 2025. 

The new Director-General will officially assume office on July 25, 2026, when the current term ends.

Speaking with journalists recently , Dr. Ajayi, who previously served as Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to OPCW, stressed that her top priority would be ensuring all nations sign up to the Chemical Weapons Convention.

Ajayi also highlighted her plans to ethically deploy artificial intelligence, ensure smart budgeting, and push for inclusivity.

She said, “My vision for the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, there are quite a lot, but I’ll mention a few. The first one is what we call the universality of the convention. What do I mean? There are currently 193 countries accredited to the OPCW. The only four countries that are not in the OPCW are Israel, Egypt, South Sudan and North Korea. What I intend to do is ensure that all countries of the world sign up to the convention, thereby achieving a universal convention”.

She said her leadership would champion gender equity and diversity, while also striving to ease global divisions.

She said, “Now, we live in a very polarised world. I will see how I can be a bridge builder, bringing everybody together to focus on the core reason why the convention came about in the first place. Which is to rid the world of chemical weapons. So that chemical weapons will not be used by anyone at any time and anywhere in the world going forward,” she explained.

Ajayi, who trained as an optometrist and ocular pathologist before becoming a diplomat, described herself as a bridge between science and diplomacy.

“My training as a person is first of all as an optometrist and an ocular pathologist. So I’m an eye doctor by profession. But sometime in my life, precisely 2017 to 2023, I served as the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, first to Hungary with concurrent accreditation to Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and Serbia. And subsequently, I was cross-posted to the Kingdom of the Netherlands in 2021 as the Ambassador of Nigeria still for a second tour of duty. 

“This time, I was also the permanent representative of Nigeria to the OPCW, the Permanent Court of Arbitration, the International Criminal Court, International Court of Justice and Common Fund for Commodities. So when I say I’m a bridge between science and diplomacy, it’s because my background is science and I’m also a trained diplomat,” she said.

Ajayi said her candidacy would also place Nigeria and Africa in a position of global recognition.

“What you need to know is, first of all, even the moral standing that it gives Nigeria is that Nigeria is very concerned about the security architecture of the world. It brings a lot of respect and honor that Nigeria is paying attention to the security of the world, especially to be able to attain peace and well-being for the citizens of the world.

“But when you come back home and say, okay, so what’s in it for us? The thing is this, like begets like. Part of why I’m doing this now is to create an awareness about the organisation. Many people, when I tell them, oh, the president has nominated me for the position of director general at OPCW, they’re like, what is OPCW? And then I have to say it’s the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons,” she explained.

She noted that Nigeria has talent but needs exposure to international opportunities.

She said, “When a Nigerian, an African is in that position, more nations of Africa will take notice. We have the talent, we have the people, but if they don’t know anything is happening somewhere, they cannot partake of it. So that is what it would do for Nigeria. It would give us a lot of respect on the international stage. It would also give us access”.

Ajayi, who once chaired Nigeria’s Women Ambassadors Network, said she is confident of her chances in the race.

She emphasised that women inclusion in chemical security is part of her agenda, noting that “gender inclusion is a moral obligation to our world” and that state parties are already committed to supporting it.

If elected, Dr. Ajayi would become not only the first woman but also the first African to lead the OPCW, a role she insists will be used to ensure proper collaboration, less polarisation, and a world free of chemical weapons.