…Education, security too… after $3 bn in aid …Experts: This is a diplomatic red alert …Say HIV, TB, malaria programmes at risk By Chioma Obinna Nigeria could be staring at one of its biggest humanitarian crises in decades after the United States (U.S.) House of Representatives voted to withhold 100 per cent of American assistance to the country over concerns about alleged continued killing of Christians and worsening insecurity. Although the measure is yet to become law, health experts and development stakeholders warned that if eventually approved by the U.S. Senate and signed by President Donald Trump, the decision could cripple life-saving health programmes, throw thousands of aid workers into unemployment, disrupt humanitarian interventions and reverse decades of gains against HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, and maternal deaths.
They, however, described the development as a painful reminder that Nigeria’s heavy dependence on foreign donors has become a major national vulnerability. The amendment, sponsored by Congressman Gregory Steube, was adopted by the House during consideration of the Fiscal Year 2027 State Department Appropriations Bill. Steube announced after the vote: “American taxpayers should never bankroll governments that turn a blind eye while Christians are abducted, tortured, and murdered.” Assistance The legislation raises an earlier proposal to suspend 50 per cent of assistance to a complete freeze until the U.S.
Secretary of State certifies that Nigeria has taken measurable steps to stop the violence and prosecute perpetrators. However, the proposal must still pass the U.S. Senate and receive presidential assent before becoming law.
For more than two decades, Nigeria has remained one of America’s largest aid beneficiaries. The United States provided $1.16 billion in assistance in 2022, about $1.02 billion in 2023, and approximately $767 million in 2024, with much of the funding channelled through USAID, PEPFAR and other agencies. Over the years, Washington has invested more than $6 billion in Nigeria’s HIV response alone through the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), supporting treatment for over 1.5 million Nigerians, including more than one million women and children.
Mission in Nigeria’s 2024 report, American assistance also provided malaria medicines to 2.2 million children, supported 13 mill…
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