USAID Fall: Hope Returns To HIV/AIDS Patients As Trump Signs $2.1bn Deal With Nigeria To Strengthen Health Care
Washington announced Saturday that it has signed a deal to strengthen Nigeria’s health system, a sign of improving ties with Africa’s most populous nation after President Donald Trump denounced attacks against Christians there.
Under a five-year bilateral deal, Washington will contribute nearly $2.1 billion to help prevent HIV, tuberculosis, malaria, and polio, and to protect maternal and child health, a US State Department spokesman said.
Nigeria has committed to increasing its national health spending by nearly $3 billion over the five-year period, the spokesman said, adding that the bilateral deal contains “a strong emphasis on promoting Christian faith-based health care providers.”
The deal signed Saturday “was negotiated in connection with reforms the Nigerian government has made to prioritize protecting Christian populations from violence,” the State Department spokesman said.
The United States in early December signed a $2.5 billion health aid deal with Kenya, the first such bilateral agreement since Trump tore down USAID and sidelined NGOs.
Story By Vanguard
