President Donald Trump of the United States has signed an executive order which earmarks $50 million for religious programmes globally.
The order is titled, “Advancing International Religious Freedom.”
Under the order, the Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, is expected to create action plans for countries to assist in eliminating religious persecution.
The $50 million will go to the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
The order states, “Religious freedom, America’s first freedom, is moral and national security imperative. Religious freedom for all people worldwide is a foreign policy priority of the United States, and the United States will respect and vigorously promote this freedom.”
Vice President Mike Pence has expressed excitement over the new order.
“I’m proud to stand with (Trump) today as he continued to take decisive action to promote Religious Freedom around the world,” the vice president tweeted.
The acting Administration of USAID, John Barsa, said the organisation was “grateful for the President’s leadership in advancing religious freedom around the world.”
Religious persecution, particularly against Christians have been on the rise in the recent past.
A group, Open Doors USA, had in its 2020 Watch List identified Korea, Afghanistan and Somalia as countries where it is most difficult to practise Christianity. Among the 50 countries listed by the group, Nigeria ranked 12th.
In April, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), in its annual report, listed 14 countries as “countries of concern.” It said the countries encourage or tolerate “systematic, ongoing, egregious violations.”