The Congressional Research Service (CRS), a non-partisan group which provides legislative research and analysis for the United States Congress, has disclosed that crude oil accounted for 88 per cent of the country’s $4.4 billion imports from Nigeria in 2019.
In its updated research paper titled ,”Nigeria: Current Issues and US Policy”, authored for the American lawmakers by an Analyst in African Affairs, Tomas Husted and Specialist in African Affairs, Lauren Blanchard, the CRS disclosed that Nigeria has maintained its position as the United States’ second-largest trading partner in sub-Saharan Africa.
The document prepared by persons, America said have in-depth knowledge of happenings in Africa and Nigeria, seeks to help the country’s lawmakers take ‘informed’ decisions on key issues in the country.
“As of 2019, Nigeria was the United States’ second-largest trading partner in sub-Saharan Africa (after South Africa) and third-largest beneficiary of U.S. foreign direct investment (FDI) in the region (after Mauritius and South Africa).
“Nigerian exports to the United States are dominated by crude oil, which at $4.4 billion accounted for 88 per cent of U.S. imports from Nigeria in 2019. According to U.S. International Trade Commission data, Nigeria consistently ranks as the top source of exports to the United States under the African Growth and Opportunity Act,” it stated
However, it noted that Nigeria also remains a major regional destination for U.S. exports of motor vehicles and refined petroleum products (e.g., gasoline), which are among the fastest-growing U.S. exports to Africa.
Agricultural products and machinery, the research group said, are other top U.S. exports to the country, adding that Nigerian demand also has driven growing U.S. petroleum exports to nearby Togo, a regional transhipment hub.
On U.S. foreign assistance globally, the document noted that the USAID allocated $451.4 million in bilateral aid for Nigeria in FY2020, nearly 90 per cent of which supported health programmes.
“The administration requested $472.1 million for Nigeria for FY2021, a rare case in Africa in which the Trump Administration’s aid proposal exceeded the previous year’s allocation.
“These total exclude emergency humanitarian assistance and other aid provided through global programs—those not allocated by country in annual State Department Congressional Budget Justifications—or funds managed by other U.S. agencies.
“The State Department and USAID allocated $468.6 million in humanitarian funding in response to the Lake Chad Basin crisis in FY2019, including $346.9 million for Nigeria,” it stated.
– Thisday