US Embassy, Consulate in Nigeria to Observe Holiday on Monday

The United States Embassy Abuja and the US Consulate General Lagos will suspend normal operations on Monday, January 19, 2026, to observe Martin Luther King Jr Day.

The announcement was made on Sunday by the US Mission in Nigeria via its official X account.

“The US Embassy in Abuja and Consulate General in Lagos will be closed on Monday, January 19, 2026, in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day,” the statement said.

Martin Luther King Jr Day is a US federal holiday observed on the third Monday of January.

It honours the life and legacy of Dr King, a prominent leader of the American civil rights movement who advocated racial equality, social justice, and nonviolent protest.

US Embassy, Consulate in Nigeria to Close Monday. Credit: U.S. Mission Nigeria/X

Dr King played a central role in landmark civil rights achievements, including the Montgomery bus boycott and the March on Washington, and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. He was assassinated in 1968.

The holiday was officially established in 1983, when legislation was signed into law by then-President Ronald Reagan, and was first observed nationwide in 1986, close to Dr King’s birthday on January 15.

Normal operations at both facilities are expected to resume on Tuesday, January 20, 2026.