The United States has signed a five‑year health cooperation agreement with Nigeria, pledging nearly $2.1 billion to strengthen the country’s health system.
The deal, announced on Saturday by the U.S. State Department, places strong emphasis on supporting Christian faith‑based healthcare providers.
The funding will target programmes addressing HIV, tuberculosis, malaria, and polio, alongside initiatives to improve maternal and child health. Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, has committed to increasing its own national health spending by almost $3 billion over the same period.
The agreement comes amid heightened U.S. attention to the security situation facing Christian communities in Nigeria.
Last month, President Donald Trump warned that Washington was prepared to take military action in response to attacks on Christians, framing the issue as part of a broader concern about global persecution of Christianity.
Religious Freedom Concerns and Policy Shift
Trump’s administration has placed Nigeria back on the U.S. list of “Countries of Particular Concern” over religious freedom and imposed restrictions on visa issuance to Nigerian nationals.
Abuja, however, insists it does not tolerate religious persecution, arguing that insecurity is driven by broader factors.
Nigeria has battled a jihadist insurgency since 2009, particularly in the northeast, where violence has killed at least 40,000 people and displaced around two million, according to United Nations figures.
Both Christians and Muslims have been victims of the conflict.
The deal with Nigeria follows a $2.5 billion health assistance agreement with Kenya earlier in December.
That pact marked the first major bilateral health deal since Trump dismantled the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and reduced the role of NGOs in foreign assistance.
Since returning to office, Trump has shifted U.S. aid policy toward bilateral arrangements aligned with his “America First” priorities, focusing on strategic and political objectives.
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