Nigeria’s Women and Girls Hit Hardest by British and US Funding Cuts, UK Committee Told

**Lead**

A UK parliamentary committee has been told that women and girls in Nigeria are bearing the brunt of sweeping funding cuts imposed by both the British government and the United States, with severe consequences for scientific research, public health programmes and educational opportunities. The evidence, presented during a session examining the impact of reduced international development spending, highlighted how the withdrawal of financial support is reversing hard-won gains in maternal health, girls’ education and gender equality in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields.

**Context**

The cuts in question stem from recent decisions by the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) to slash the overseas aid budget from 0.7 per cent to 0.5 per cent of gross national income, and from the US government’s significant reductions to USAID programmes under the current administration. Nigeria, as one of the largest recipients of bilateral aid from both countries, has been particularly exposed. The committee heard that many projects specifically designed to support women and girls – including scholarships for female STEM students, community health centres offering reproductive care, and research partnerships tackling infectious diseases – have been either terminated or scaled back.

Witnesses, including academics, non-governmental organisation representatives and former aid officials, described a cascade of effects. In northern Nigeria, where girls’ school attendance is already among the lowest in the world, the closure of UK-funded ‘safe space’ programmes has left thousands of adolescent girls without access to basic literacy and numeracy classes. Meanwhile, US-funded research into neglected tropical diseases, which disproportionately affect women due to their roles as primary caregivers, has stalled. The committee was also told that the loss of British support for the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research has delayed clinical trials for new treatments for malaria and sickle cell disease, conditions that kill tens of thousands of women of childbearing age each year.

**Analysis**

The implications of these funding cuts extend far beyond immediate service delivery. For decades, British and American investment in Nigeria’s scientific infrastructure has helped build a cadre of female researchers and health professionals. Programmes such as the UK’s ‘Women in Science’ initiative and USAID’s ‘Partnership for Higher Education in Africa’ have enabled hundreds of Nigerian women to pursue postgraduate degrees and lead laboratories. With those funding streams now severed, the pipeline of female talent into STEM careers is at risk of drying up. The committee heard that without sustained support, the gender gap in Nigerian science will widen, depriving the country of the diverse perspectives needed to tackle complex challenges like climate change, food security and epidemic preparedness.

Moreover, the cuts are occurring at a time when Nigeria is already grappling with a worsening economic crisis and high inflation. The devaluation of the naira has made it even harder for local universities and research centres to fill the gaps left by foreign donors. The evidence presented to the committee suggested that the most vulnerable women – those in rural areas, internally displaced persons camps and conflict zones – are losing access to life-saving services. Maternal mortality rates, which had been slowly declining thanks to UK-funded midwifery training and US-supported emergency obstetric care, are now feared to be rising again. The committee was warned that the long-term cost of these cuts, measured in lost human potential and preventable deaths, will far outweigh any short-term fiscal savings.

**Sources**

This article is based on evidence presented to a UK parliamentary committee examining the impact of foreign aid reductions, as reported by multiple news organisations including the BBC, The Guardian and Reuters. Additional context draws from publicly available reports by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Nigerian Ministry of Health. No specific figures or direct quotes have been reproduced to avoid reliance on unverified data.