NIGERIA

COOPERATIVE THREAT REDUCTION PROGRAM

BIOLOGICAL THREAT REDUCTION PROGRAM

• The U.S. does not own or control 

any Nigerian laboratories: all facilities 

supported by BTRP are owned and 

operated by the government of 

Nigeria. 

• Recent Russian disinformation 

falsely asserts that there are “UScontrolled laboratories” in Abuja, 

Lagos, and Zaria which have played a 

role in recent Monkeypox outbreaks. The 

government of Nigeria recently rejected this 

false claim (see official statement below). 

• Monkeypox is indigenous to Nigeria and 

represents a constant threat to its population. 

BTRP’s objective is to provide assistance to 

the Nigerian government in order to help 

Nigerian partners prevent, detect, and mitigate 

outbreaks caused by this virus and other 

endemic pathogens.

• BTRP supports only peaceful activities, such as 

training on biorisk management and infection 

prevention and control. For example, BTRP 

has provided an incinerator to the Nigerian 

Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) National 

Reference Laboratory in Abuja for safe disposal 

of laboratory waste. BTRP has worked with 

our Nigerian partners to identify potential 

future laboratory and facility infrastructure 

enhancements to ensure safety for both the 

Nigerian staff and public. 

• In cooperation with the Nigerian government, 

BTRP has trained Nigerian healthcare 

workers to recognize signs and symptoms 

of monkeypox and teach participants in the 

proper use of personal protective equipment, 

safe and secure handling of samples, and 

diagnostic and reporting procedures. This 

training was confined to textbook and 

classroom instruction.

The Biological Threat Reduction Program (BTRP), part of the Department of Defense’s Cooperative 

Threat Reduction (DoD CTR) program, is implemented by the Defense Threat Reduction Agency 

(DTRA) to promote international cooperation in the fields of public health, disease detection, and 

biological security. Since 2018, the program has worked with the Nigerian public health sector to 

enhance its diagnostic and disease detection capabilities to support both local and international 

efforts to diagnose, track, and respond to potential infectious disease outbreaks.

The Defense Threat Reduction Agency enables the Department of Defense, the 

United States Government and International partners to counter and deter DTRA MISSION weapons of mass destruction and emerging threats.

KEY FACTS • DoD CTR is one of many organizations 

collaborating with Nigeria to reduce the threat 

of infectious disease in Nigeria and the region. 

Other supporters include the European Union, 

Global Affairs Canada, Germany’s Agency 

for International Cooperation (GIZ), the 

Japanese International Cooperation Agency 

(JICA), the Korean International Cooperation 

Agency (KOICA), World Health Organization, 

international universities and research 

institutions, as well as other U.S. interagency 

partners.

• BTRP’s cooperation with Nigeria meets the 

highest international ethical and technical 

standards. The program promotes sharing 

knowledge, expertise, and technology to 

provide diagnostic capabilities in a safe and 

secure manner.

READ MORE: 

https://ncdc.gov.ng/news/371/nigeria-hasno-laboratories-where-monkeypox-virus-isgenerated