On Monday, 3rd February, Nigerian investigative journalist David Hundeyin exposed a series of explosive revelations that have raised concerns about potential corruption and money laundering within United States Agency for International Development (USAID) operations in Nigeria.
David’s investigation centres on questionable financial transactions between USAID and a vendor in Nigeria, DAI Global LLC.
According to David’s findings, USAID made a $3.3 million payment to DAI Global LLC just days before President Donald Trump’s inauguration on 20th January 2025. However, this payment is merely a fraction of a far larger sum. Between August 2020 and January 2025, USAID allegedly directed at least $48 million of U.S. taxpayers’ money to the vendor, which is registered in Bethesda, Maryland.
He wrote on X, (formerly Twitter): “Hi @elonmusk, here are some cut-and-dried cases of @USAIDNigeria corruption and money laundering you may want to look into. On January 16, 2025, just 4 days before @realDonaldTrump’s inauguration, USAID made a $3.3m payment to a vendor in Nigeria called DAI Global LLC. I looked into the payment history and saw that between August 2020 and January 2025, at least $48 million of US taxpayers’ money supposedly invested in Nigeria went to DAI Globall LLC, registered in Bethesda, Maryland.”
Despite receiving substantial funds, David’s research paints a troubling picture of DAI Global’s activities. The organisation claims to be a “Climate NGO,” but its operations appear to be limited to arranging meetings, holding seminars, and posing for photographs with politicians. In fact, the last verifiable output from DAI Global in Nigeria dates back to 2020. Nevertheless, the organisation continued to receive millions of dollars, under ambiguous labels.
David added: “So I looked into @DAIGlobal’s activities in Nigeria and it turns out to be a run-of-the-mill “Climate NGO” which organises meetings and seminars, and stages photos with politicians, and little else. Yet nearly all of its payments from USAID in Nigeria are labeled ‘ALL OTHER PROFESSIONAL, SCIENTIFIC, AND TECHNICAL SERVICES.’
“It last published an output in Nigeria in 2020. So what exactly it has reveived 48 MILLION US DOLLARS for over that period is anyone’s guess. A USAID money laundering partner? CIA front organisation? State department Nigerian slush fund? Perhaps all 3? Who knows?
“But it gets worse.”
The situation seems to have taken a darker turn after President Trump’s inauguration on 20th January 2025.
According to the journalist’s findings, USAID made at least $799,000 in payments to Nigerian recipients marked “UNDISCLOSED” or “MISCELLANEOUS.” This includes $446,000 in payments made over a two-day period, from 29th to 30th January 2025. This came after President Trump had ordered USAID to cease all payments on 28th January 2025. However, despite this directive, USAID continued to disburse taxpayer funds, with several large transfers labelled “UNDISCLOSED” occurring within 24 hours of the president’s order, raising concerns about possible mismanagement and misconduct.
He said: “Since @realDonaldTrump’s inauguration on January 20, at least $799,000 of US taxpayers money has been paid by USAID to recipients in Nigeria marked “UNDISCLOSED” or “MISCELLANEOUS.”
“At least $446,000 of these payments to “UNDISCLOSED” recipients in Nigeria was sent across 8 payments between January 29 and January 30. Meanwhile, you will remember that the US president ordered USAID to halt all payments on January 28.
“@USAIDNigeria disobeyed a DIRECT INSTRUCTION from the US president and spent the next 24 hours after the instruction furiously shelling out half a million dollars of US taxpayers money to recipients in Nigeria marked “UNDISCLOSED.”
“I’ll leave the implications of this to you.”
In response to the developing scandal, billionaire Elon Musk, who had been recently appointed by President Trump to oversee the potential merger of USAID with the State Department, called the agency a “criminal organisation.” His remarks triggered significant internal unrest, leading to two senior security officials at USAID being placed on leave after they refused to cooperate with Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Additionally, reports indicated that USAID employees had been locked out of the agency’s computer systems overnight.
The unfolding saga involving USAID comes amid broader changes to the agency under the Trump administration.
Shortly after taking office, President Trump signed an executive order halting most international funding for 90 days while a comprehensive review took place. This decision led to turmoil within USAID, which struggled to realign its operations with the new administration’s priorities.
