Country Profile

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PROGRAMS

PEACE AND SECURITY

USAID is helping farmers’ organizations, like this group in Kano, Nigeria, to plant and harvest higher-yielding crops. These women have boosted their incomes by producing more cowpeas than in previous years.

To promote peace and security in Nigeria, USAID will increase the capacity of government institutions, civil society, political parties, faith-based organizations, and other stakeholders to prevent, manage, and mitigate the impact of conflict. Innovative youth programs and interfaith dialogue have reduced the potential for violent clashes.

GOVERNING JUSTLY AND DEMOCRATICALLY

USAID assistance advances the rule of law by strengthening the capacity and transparency of the justice system and building judicial independence at the federal level. To advance good governance and anti-corruption reform, USAID will support the creation of more responsive national and local governance structures, improve service delivery, and strengthen budget management capacity and fiscal oversight. The United States works directly with a diverse representation of Nigerian civil society organizations, building their internal management capacity and strengthening their ability to engage with the government on issues of fiscal accountability, budget monitoring, and transparency within extractive industries. Since the 2007 elections, USAID activities have been working to improve the organizational development of political parties, support the independence of the electoral commission, and encourage civil society input into electoral and constitutional reform dialogue to promote credible elections in 2011.

INVESTING IN PEOPLE

Nigeria cannot sustainably establish good governance, stability, and economic growth while its people lack fundamental health and education services. USAID is supporting increased access to quality family planning and reproductive health services. Maternal and child health efforts focus on routine immunization, polio eradication, birth preparedness, maternity services and obstetric fistula repairs. In response to the more than 300,000 Nigerian children who needlessly die from malaria each year, the United States is increasing access to proven preventive and curative interventions—insecticide-treated bednets, net re-treatment kits, and malaria treatment for children and pregnant women. Nigeria also has one of the largest tuberculosis burdens in Africa. To reduce death and disability, especially in the vulnerable coinfected HIV/AIDS population, USAID is working to double the case detection rate and halve the incidence of tuberculosis by 2018.

In education, USAID programs support equitable access to quality basic education through teacher training, support for girls’ learning, infrastructure improvement, and community involvement, focusing on public schools, as well as Islamiyyah schools, which provide both secular and religious education. U.S. assistance also fosters higher education partnerships between American and Nigerian universities, especially those in the north and the volatile Delta regions.

ECONOMIC GROWTH

To improve the enabling environment for agriculture and microfinance, USAID programs are accelerating the uptake of proven agricultural production, processing, and marketing technologies and stimulating job creation through agribusiness enterprises. U.S. assistance also focuses on expanding investment opportunities, which are hindered by limited access to market-driven commercial financial services, including microfinance. USAID is helping to develop a policy environment for micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises, and expand access to market-driven vocational and technical training linked with private sector employment opportunities. The United States is also supporting customs
regulation and policy reform to encourage internal and external trade, encouraging the use of U.S. African Growth and Opportunity Act incentives for trade with the United States, and developing private sector capacity to meet international trade and export standards.

NIGERIA SNAPSHOT

Date of independence: 1960
Population: 140 million (2006)
GDP per person: $1,158 (yr)
Source: U.S. Department of State

CONTACT INFORMATION

Nigeria Mission Director
Dana Mansuri                                                                                                                                                                                                   -Murjanatu House                                                                                                                                                                                               No. 1 Zambezi Crescent (Off Aguiyi Ironsi Way)                                                                                                                                           Maitama, Abuja
P.M.B. 519
Garki
Abuja
Nigeria
Tel: 234-09-461-9400

Nigeria Desk Officer
Dana Alzouma
Tel: 202-712-0432
Email: dalzouma@usaid.gov