The United States has authorised $413 million, estimated at N587 billion, for counter-insurgency and security efforts in Nigeria and other African nations in 2026, as insurgency and banditry continue to spread across West Africa.
The allocation is contained in the US National Defence Authorisation Act for 2026, which President Donald Trump signed into law on December 18, 2025.
The funds fall under the Operations and Maintenance budget for the United States Africa Command, known as AFRICOM. The command received the full amount it requested, although the Act does not specify how the money will be distributed among countries or operations.
The approval comes amid increased US military engagement in Nigeria. On Tuesday, AFRICOM supplied military equipment to Nigerian security agencies, only weeks after US forces carried out air strikes on terrorist hideouts in Sokoto State on Christmas Day.
Overall, the 2026 defence authorisation law approves $901 billion in US defence spending and provides a four per cent salary increase for American troops. It also marks the 65th consecutive year the United States has enacted an annual defence authorisation law.
Insecurity across the region continues to worsen
The AFRICOM allocation reflects growing insecurity across West Africa. Nigeria is battling insurgency in the North-East, banditry in the North-West and piracy in the Gulf of Guinea. In other parts of the region, jihadist attacks have escalated in Mali, while northern Benin is experiencing spillover violence from the Sahel.
Within the same operations and maintenance budget, the Act approved $385.7 million for the US European Command, $224.9 million for the US Southern Command, $77 million for US Forces Korea, $331.4 million for cyberspace operations and $550 million for cybersecurity. Spending on operating forces under this category totals nearly $40 billion.
Washington establishes new Africa-focused positions
In addition to military funding, the law creates the position of Assistant Secretary for African Affairs at the State Department and establishes a new Bureau of African Affairs.
The bureau will be responsible for managing US foreign policy and assistance across sub-Saharan Africa, underscoring Washington’s increasing attention to the continent.
The legislation also mandates a comprehensive review of Russia’s military strategy, troop deployment and overseas bases in Africa, as well as an assessment of how Moscow’s activities could influence US military planning under AFRICOM, Central Command and European Command.
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