The United States has placed Nigeria on its Child Soldiers Prevention Act blacklist, a move that could trigger restrictions on military training, arms sales, foreign military financing and defence cooperation from October 1, 2026, unless President Donald Trump grants a waiver.
The designation follows allegations that Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) continue to recruit and use children in armed conflicts in Nigeria.
According to the US State Department’s 2026 Trafficking in Persons Report, published on October 11, Nigeria is among 14 countries listed for the recruitment or use of child soldiers. Other countries on the list include Russia, Iran, South Sudan and Somalia.
The report covers the period from April 1, 2025, to March 31, 2026, and also states that Nigeria has failed to meet the minimum standards for eliminating human trafficking for the 15th consecutive year.
It explains that governments placed on the Child Soldiers Prevention Act list may face restrictions in the following fiscal year on certain security assistance and the commercial licensing of military equipment.
The restrictions cover programmes such as International Military Education and Training, Foreign Military Financing, Excess Defence Articles and Peacekeeping Operations, subject to specified exceptions.
The State Department said its decision to include countries on the list was informed by multiple sources, including direct observations by US government personnel, United Nations agencies, international organisations, local and international non-governmental organisations, and credible media reports.
The development comes amid ongoing security cooperation between Washington and Abuja, including joint counterterrorism operations involving US Navy SEAL Team 6 and Nigerian forces in the northeast, as well as the formalisation of the 2026 bilateral Defence Cooperation Roadmap.
The report also raised concerns about Nigeria’s anti-trafficking efforts, noting that no government official was prosecuted for complicity in trafficking despite acknowledged corruption.
It further disclosed that the number of trafficking victims who received government assistance dropped sharply from 2,058 in the previous reporting period to 675.
