U.S. Eyes Visa Ban on Nigeria, Citing Tinubu’s Corruption, Security Failures – Report

The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump is preparing to impose a general visa ban on Nigeria, citing rampant corruption under President Bola Tinubu and the Nigerian government’s failure to maintain a credible traveller database. According to a memo obtained by The Washington Post, the U.S. State Department, under Secretary of State Marco Rubio, identified Nigeria as one of 36 countries under review for new travel restrictions aimed at curbing immigration from nations with inadequate identity management systems and poor governance.

The memo, signed by Secretary Rubio and circulated to American diplomats globally, highlights issues such as the lack of transparency, poor intelligence sharing, and the inability to produce reliable identification and civil documents as reasons for the potential ban. It accuses several countries, including Nigeria, of government fraud and notes that many of their citizens overstay visas once in the United States.

Nations identified in the memo have been given 60 days to present a credible action plan to meet newly established benchmarks. Initial proposals are expected to be submitted by 8:00 a.m. on the upcoming Wednesday. Failure to comply could trigger broad travel restrictions similar to those enacted earlier this month against 12 countries, including Iran, Libya, Somalia, and Yemen.

Out of the 36 countries now at risk of travel restrictions, 25 are African, including two of the United States’ key military allies on the continent — Egypt and Djibouti. Other nations listed include Ghana, Ethiopia, Uganda, Cameroon, Burkina Faso, and Tanzania, alongside small island states such as Saint Lucia and Tuvalu.

Nigeria faced a similar visa ban during Trump’s first term in office, which was later lifted after then-President Muhammadu Buhari implemented reforms to strengthen immigration protocols. This new round of scrutiny comes amid increasing concerns in Washington over governance and transparency issues under President Tinubu, who has long battled serious allegations of drug trafficking and academic fraud.

Six months ago, it was reported that President Tinubu paid $2.7 million to U.S. lobbyists in an effort to mitigate reputational damage tied to those allegations. Despite that effort, Nigeria’s inclusion on the so-called “third-world list” signals growing unease within the Trump administration over the reliability and integrity of governance in Africa’s most populous nation.