By Kolawole Ojebisi
The United States Ambassador to Nigeria, Robert Mills, has weighed in on the controversy surrounding the closure of United States Agency for International Development (USAID ) globally.
Mills clarified that President Donald Trump’s administration did not cut assistance but implemented a 90-day pause to develop ways to make it more effective.
He explained, “No assistance has been cut yet, and no decisions have been made about the future of our assistance. In fact, US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, has said that this is not about ending foreign assistance to our partners like Nigeria. It’s about making our assistance more effective and aligning it with US government policies and interests.
“That’s what this 90-day pause is for. However, there are waivers for life-saving assistance, such as support for HIV patients, maternal and child nutrition, and internally displaced people. So that continues. In 90 days, we will know where we stand.”
Regarding other issues discussed with the 36 state governors, the US Ambassador mentioned that he outlined the embassy’s vision for the future of the US-Nigerian relationship.
He stated, “I explained to them that we are going to focus on four key priorities in the coming years. The first is improving the business environment to increase trade and investment between the United States and Nigeria.
“Second, a renewed focus on improving transparency and accountability in Nigeria, fighting corruption, and empowering Nigerian voices advocating for more transparency.
“Third, we want to be more engaged at the subnational level, at the state level, and with local governing authorities. I believe the embassy needs to engage more in this area as we develop our programs and assistance.
“Lastly, we discussed our health care programmes, which are a large part of US assistance to Nigeria. As these programmes succeed—such as reducing HIV cases and eradicating polio—we want to ensure their sustainability and transition them to the Nigerian government at the federal and state levels.”
Mills stated that the aim is to ensure the sustainability of these health programmes and transfer them to the Nigerian government for effective management, helping to create a stronger healthcare future.
