FG hires lobbying firm for $9m to ‘communicate Christians protection efforts’ to US

The federal government has hired a lobbying firm in a $9 million contract to assist in communicating its actions on protecting Christians in Nigeria to the United States government.

According to the lobbying contract document filed with the US Department of Justice, Aster Legal, a law firm in Kaduna state, hired the services of DCI Group on behalf of Nuhu Ribadu, the national security adviser.

DCI Group is a US-based public affairs and lobbying firm.

The agreement was signed by Oyetunji Olalekan Teslim, the managing partner of Aster Legal, and Justin Peterson, managing member of DCI group, on December 17, 2025.

According to the contract details, the American lobbying firm is expected to “assist the Nigerian government through Aster Legal in communicating its actions to protect Nigerian Christian communities and maintaining U.S support in countering West African jihadist groups and other destabilizing elements”.

It was agreed that the contract would be for six months until June 30, 2026, and would be automatically renewed for another six months.

The contract includes a clause that stipulates that any party in the case can terminate the agreement for any reason without penalty by providing 60 days’ advance written notice of termination to the other party.

On December 12, Nigeria paid the American lobbying firm the sum of $4.5 million as a six-month retainer pre-payment for the contract.

“Client shall pay Consultant a monthly retainer seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars ($750,000; being full payment of professional fees and expenses covered under this agreement). The monthly payment shall be made in two (2) six-month installments of four million five hundred thousand dollars ($4,500,000) one due (a) upon execution of this Agreement and the other (b) upon expiration of six months from the effective date,” the fee & expenses section of the contract reads.

The federal government hired the American lobbying firm amid the interest of the US government in reports of killings of Christians in Nigeria.

In October, Trump redesignated Nigeria as a ‘country of particular concern’ in response to allegations of a Christian genocide in the country.

The Nigerian government had repeatedly denied the Christian genocide claim and promised to engage with the US government.

In November, US President Donald Trump had threatened to go into Nigeria “guns-a-blazing to wipe out the terrorists killing our cherished Christians”, after some US politicians repeatedly claimed that there was a genocide against Christians in the West African nation.

On Christmas Day, the US launched air strikes against two terrorist enclaves in Bauni forest in Tangaza LGA, Sokoto state.