No more giveaway

Trump isn’t giving free money to Africa anymore

Good morning, Big Brains. I have written over 170 editions of The Big Daily, which means I’ve written over 170 intros. Today, I have nothing to say. No comments, just good morning.

- Margaret

Word count: ~ 1, 000

Reading time ~ 4 mins

---

Let’s get into today’s edition:

• America isn’t giving free money to Africa anymore

• Trump said, “No opps on my payroll”

---

The Big Deal

America isn’t giving free money to Africa anymore

We need the conspiracy theorists to come forward because there must be some sort of brutal connection between Nigeria and leaders whose names start with T. The T we are focusing on today is Donald Trump, who is beginning to compete with President Tinubu for the T-Pain nickname.

On Tuesday, January 28, Trump decided to cut the funds that sponsor the distribution of drugs for malaria, HIV, tuberculosis and medical supplies for babies in countries where the US Agency for International Development (USAID) functions. And that includes yours truly – Nigeria.

This is part of a freeze on U.S. aid and funding that has been in place since Trump became president on January 20. We can’t say this is a surprising move because Trump has always been vocal about making America great again by putting Americans first.

Why is this a big deal?

When it comes to foreign aid, the US is that donor that nobody wants to miss. The country singlehandedly sponsored about 42% of all foreign aid recorded by the United Nations in 2024. In December 2024 alone, former president Joe Biden donated $1 billion to 31 African countries, and in 2023, Nigeria was a beneficiary of a hefty $1 billion plus from the US government in foreign aid.

But it isn’t the dollar bills that make this news a big deal; it’s the lives these funds touch. This funding cut will affect organizations supporting over 6.5 million orphans and vulnerable children with HIV across 23 countries. For Nigerians living with HIV, this means that they risk getting sicker, and for those free of the disease, this would mean a risk of contracting drug-resistant strains of HIV, according to Atul Gawande, former head of global health at USAID.

Unfortunately, HIV isn’t the only disease we have to worry about. In November 2024, USAID announced that it would buy $2.3 million worth of malaria tablets from Swiss Pharma Nigeria to donate to vulnerable Nigerians. This is the kind of huge donations the US regularly poured into Nigeria’s malaria problem. If you’re wondering how big of a malaria problem we have, here’s a summary - Nigeria has the highest number of malaria cases in the world, making up about 27% of malaria cases recorded globally. Without the US donations, it could get even worse.

Typically, no country should feel entitled to the U.S.’s money, but some of us are stuck with leaders who have made the generosity necessary to rely on. While Nigeria will continue to get foreign aid from other donor countries, the absence of the US will be felt because no country is as generous as they are.

Trump said, “No opps on my payroll”

We’re not seers, but we’re sure Trump is currently recreating that Damson Idris “I’m trending, I don’t know why” meme. It’s because his administration has just said goodbye to more than 12 Justice Department lawyers who played key roles in two criminal cases against him.

According to an official of the Justice Department, , these lawyers were shown the door because Acting Attorney General James McHenry, a Trump appointee, decided they “could not be trusted to carry out the President’s agenda.” That’s basically a nicer way of saying “Bold of you to think you can prosecute Trump and keep your job under his administration”.

McHenry backed up the decision with the US Constitution, saying that as chief executive, Trump had the power to make the call. The firing spree included lawyers who worked with Special Counsel Jack Smith, the man behind Trump’s two federal cases—both of which were dropped after his recent election into office.

Yeah, you really can’t convince us that Trump isn’t coming for Tinubu’s nickname.

---

This Week’s Big Question

“What would be your first move if you could swap roles with Tinubu?”

Kanyin’s response - “I’d ban semo and spaghettini”

You can also share your response here, and if it’s as interesting Kanyin’s, we’ll feature it in the next edition.

---

The Big Picks

NAFDAC Shuts 250 Factories Producing Fake Drinks In Abia: The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control has again shut down the infamous Cemetery Market in Aba, Abia State.

Thousands Rally In Burkina Faso, Niger To Cheer ECOWAS Exit: Thousands of people rallied Tuesday in Niger and Burkina Faso in support of the withdrawal of their countries from the Economic Community of West African States, which is due to take effect Wednesday.

---