Nigeria’s Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Ali Pate, has assured citizens that the country can sustain its healthcare system despite the exit of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
His comments come amid a political firestorm surrounding USAID, as tech mogul Elon Musk who now leads President Donald Trump’s newly established Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has launched a blistering attack on the agency, calling it “evil” and “a criminal organization.”
Musk, known for his outspoken nature, accused USAID of harboring radical left-wing ideologies, posting on social media that the agency was a “viper’s nest of radical-left Marxists who hate America.”
The controversy deepened this week when U.S. Congressman Scott Perry of Pennsylvania made explosive allegations against USAID, claiming that the agency had indirectly funded terrorist organizations, including Boko Haram.
Speaking during the inaugural hearing of the Subcommittee on Delivering on Government Efficiency, Perry argued that USAID had funneled $136 million to build 120 schools in Pakistan implying that such funds could be misused for illicit activities.
Amid the growing uncertainty over USAID’s future, Minister Ali Pate insisted that Nigeria was prepared to chart its own course without relying on foreign aid.
“We may be a poor country, but we are a capable country, and we are determined to own up to that responsibility,” Pate stated in an interview with Channels Television on Friday.
He emphasized that while Nigeria would welcome international assistance, it would not grovel for it. “If others step in and support us, we appreciate it, but we are not begging for it, and we also will live within what we have,” he added.
Pate’s comments signal a shift towards self-reliance in Nigeria’s healthcare sector, even as the fate of USAID hangs in the balance under the Trump administration’s sweeping reforms.