The Nigerian government has signed a $9 million lobbying contract with a Republican-linked firm in Washington to ease pressure from the US government over insecurity in the country. The contract, approved by the administration of President Bola Tinubu, aims to persuade the Trump administration that Nigeria is taking concrete steps to address worsening insecurity, particularly the killings of Christians in the northern region.
The lobbying deal was facilitated by Nigeria’s National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, through a Kaduna-based law firm, Aster Legal, which acted as an intermediary in hiring the US lobbying firm, DCI Group. According to US Department of Justice filings, the Tinubu administration paid DCI Group an initial $4.5 million, with a second tranche of $4.5 million due in July 2026, bringing the total value of the contract to $9 million.
The contract is one of the most expensive lobbying contracts ever signed by an African government. DCI Group was retained to help the Nigerian government communicate its efforts to protect Christian communities and maintain US support in countering jihadist groups and other destabilizing elements in West Africa. The agreement was signed by Aster Legal’s Managing Director, Oyetunji Olalekan Teslim, and DCI Group’s Managing Partner, Justin Peterson, a prominent Republican strategist and close ally of President Trump.
The contract was finalized weeks after President Trump redesignated Nigeria as a “country of particular concern,” citing the government’s failure to curb widespread killings of Christians. The US also imposed a partial travel ban on Nigerians, affecting tourist, business, and student visa applicants, citing high visa overstay rates and an unreliable Nigerian security framework for vetting travelers.
Tensions between the two countries escalated further after President Trump announced that US forces had carried out an airstrike in northern Nigeria, targeting suspected insurgent hideouts. He warned that additional strikes could follow if the Nigerian government failed to halt violence against Christian communities.
The lobbying arrangement has sparked debate among analysts and former US officials. Chidi Blyden, a former Pentagon official, said the scale of the contract underscored the Tinubu administration’s urgency in repairing strained relations with the Trump White House. The move signals the Tinubu administration’s determination to re-establish a working relationship with the Trump administration, largely through private-sector engagement.
The Nigerian government has also engaged other lobbying channels in Washington, including a US attorney and former congressional foreign policy official, Johanna Blanc, who received $5,000 to draft a letter to Congressman Chris Smith, chair of the US House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa. The letter, written on behalf of Senate President Godswill Akpabio, invited members of the House subcommittee to visit Nigeria to engage government officials, civil society groups, and religious leaders on security and interfaith issues.
