The State Department signed a five-year memorandum with the Federal Republic of Nigeria to bolster the country’s health system by promoting faith-based health care providers.
According to the memo, the United States plans to “commit nearly $2.1 billion to expand essential preventative and curative services for HIV, TB, malaria, maternal and child health and polio,” while Nigeria will “increase its domestic health expenditures by nearly $3 billion during the term of the MOU, the largest co-investment any country has made to date under the America First Global Health Strategy,” the State Department explained.
The memorandum was created with Nigerian governmental reforms in mind to protect Christian populations from violence and persecution. The country currently has 900 faith-based clinics and hospitals serving 30% of the country.
In November, Nigerian President Bola Tinubu declared a nationwide emergency following President Trump pressuring the country amid ongoing kidnappings and killings of Christians.
“My fellow Nigerians, this is a national emergency, and we are responding by deploying more boots on the ground, especially in security-challenged areas,” the proclamation says. “The times require all hands on deck. As Nigerians, we should all get involved in securing our nation.”
“I call on the National Assembly to begin reviewing our laws to allow states that require state police to establish them,” it adds. “States should rethink establishing boarding schools in remote areas without adequate security. Mosques and churches should constantly seek police and other security protection when they gather for prayers, especially in vulnerable areas.”
Similarly, Nigeria’s National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, convened a meeting with the country’s top military and intelligence officials to weigh a response to pressure from President Trump, who demanded that Nigeria act swiftly to protect Christians and his re‑designation of Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern” (CPC) for religious‑freedom violations.
