THE United States has entered into a five-year health partnership with Nigeria.

The project is designed to reinforce Nigeria’s healthcare system, with particular emphasis on faith-based health services.

A statement from the US Department of State said the memorandum of understanding, signed on Saturday, December 20, provides for about $2.1 billion in US support for programmes targeting HIV, tuberculosis, malaria, polio, as well as maternal and child health.

Under the agreement, Nigeria is expected to significantly scale up its health financing, committing close to $3 billion over the duration of the partnership.

The deal, announced by Principal Deputy Spokesperson Thomas Pigott, falls under the framework of the America First Global Health Strategy.

In the statement, the State Department said Nigeria’s funding pledge marked the largest co-investment made so far by any country under the America First Global Health Strategy.

“Today, the United States Department of State signed a five-year bilateral health Memorandum of Understanding with the Federal Republic of Nigeria to strengthen Nigeria’s health system, with a strong emphasis on promoting Christian faith-based health care providers.

“Under this MOU, the Department of State, working with Congress, intends to commit nearly $2.1 billion to expand essential preventative and curative services for HIV, TB, malaria, maternal and child health, and polio.

According to the department, the agreement is linked to recent reforms by the Nigerian government aimed at safeguarding Christian communities from violence. As part of the deal, specific funding will be directed to Christian health facilities, particularly those providing integrated care for infectious diseases as well as maternal and child health.

The department noted that the MOU was negotiated in the context of Nigeria’s efforts to prioritise the protection of Christian populations and includes substantial funding to support Christian healthcare institutions, with a focus on expanding access to combined HIV, tuberculosis, malaria, and maternal and child health services.

The State Department said Nigeria had about 900 faith-based clinics and hospitals, which currently serve more than 30 per cent of the population. The US officials explained that investing in these facilities was meant to complement government-run health services and strengthen the country’s overall healthcare system while stressing that US support under the agreement remained conditional.

They noted that all foreign assistance was subject to review, and that the US President Donald Trump and the Secretary of State reserved the right to suspend or end any programme that did not serve US national interests.

The MOU was signed at a time of increased US scrutiny of Nigeria, following recent travel restrictions introduced by the Trump administration over national security concerns and visa overstays.

Unveiled in September 2025, the America First Global Health Strategy applies to countries receiving US health funding and marks a shift toward bilateral partnerships, greater financial commitments from partner governments, and intensified efforts to tackle HIV, tuberculosis, malaria and other priority diseases, alongside broader health system strengthening.

Fatimah QUADRI

Fatimah Quadri is a Journalist and a Fact-checker at The ICIR. She has written news articles, fact-checks, explainers, and media literacy in an effort to combat information disorder.
She can be reached at sunmibola_q on X or fquadri@icirnigeria.org