Latest news with #USAID-backed
Int'l Business Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Int'l Business Times
Slashed US Aid Showing Impact, As Congress Codifies Cuts
The United States' destruction of a warehouse worth of emergency food that had spoiled has drawn outrage, but lawmakers and aid workers say it is only one effect of President Donald Trump's abrupt slashing of foreign assistance. The Senate early Thursday approved nearly $9 billion in cuts to foreign aid as well as public broadcasting, formalizing a radical overhaul of spending that Trump first imposed with strokes of his pen on taking office nearly six months ago. US officials confirmed that nearly 500 tons of high-nutrition biscuits, meant to keep alive malnourished children in Afghanistan and Pakistan, were incinerated after they passed their expiration date in a warehouse in Dubai. Lawmakers of the rival Democratic Party said they had warned about the food in March. Senator Tim Kaine said that the inaction in feeding children "really exposes the soul" of the Trump administration. Michael Rigas, the deputy secretary of state for management, acknowledged to Kaine that blame lay with the shuttering of the US Agency for International Development (USAID), which was merged into the State Department after drastic cuts. "I think that this was just a casualty of the shutdown of USAID," Rigas said. The Atlantic magazine, which first reported the episode, said that the United States bought the biscuits near the end of Biden administration for around $800,000 and that the Trump administration's burning of the food was costing taxpayers another $130,000. For aid workers, the biscuit debacle was just one example of how drastic and sudden cuts have aggravated the impact of the aid shutdown. Kate Phillips-Barrasso, vice president for global policy and advocacy at Mercy Corps, said that large infrastructure projects were shut down immediately, without regard to how to finish them. "This really was yanking the rug out, or turning the the spigot off, overnight," she said. She pointed to the termination of a USAID-backed Mercy Corps project to improve water and sanitation in the turbulent east of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Work began in 2020 and was scheduled to end in September 2027. "Infrastructure projects are not things where 75 percent is ok. It's either done or it's not," she said. The Republican-led Senate narrowly approved the package, which needs a final green light from the House of Representatives, that, in the words of White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, will rescind funding for "$9 billion worth of crap." The bill includes ending all $437 million the United States would have given to several UN bodies including the children's agency UNICEF and the UN Development Programme. It also pulls $2.5 billion from development assistance. Under pressure from moderate Republicans, the package backs off from ending PEPFAR, the anti-HIV/AIDS initiative credited with saving 25 million lives since it was launched by former president George W. Bush more than two decades ago. Republicans and the Trump-launched Department of Government Efficiency, initially led by tycoon Elon Musk, have highlighted spending by USAID on issues that are controversial in the United States, saying it does not serve US interests. House Speaker Mike Johnson said that the Republicans were getting rid of "egregious abuses." "We can't fund transgender operas in Peru with US taxpayer dollars," Johnson told reporters, an apparent reference to a US grant under the Biden administration for the staging of an opera in Colombia that featured a transgender protagonist. The aid cuts come a week after the State Department laid off more than 1,300 employees after Secretary of State Marco Rubio ended or merged several offices, including those on climate change, refugees and human rights. Rubio called it a "very deliberate step to reorganize the State Department to be more efficient and more focused." Senate Democrats issued a scathing report that accused the Trump administration of ceding global leadership to China, which has been increasing spending on diplomacy and disseminating its worldview. The rescissions vote "will be met with cheers in Beijing, which is already celebrating America's retreat from the world under President Trump," said Jeanne Shaheen, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
The Sun
30-06-2025
- Health
- The Sun
US aid cuts may cause 14 million deaths including children: Lancet study
PARIS: A landmark study published in *The Lancet* warns that over 14 million people, including 4.5 million children under five, could die by 2030 due to drastic cuts in US foreign aid initiated by the Trump administration. The research, released as global leaders gather for a UN aid conference in Seville, Spain, highlights the life-saving impact of now-terminated USAID programmes. Until January 2025, USAID provided 40% of global humanitarian funding. Following Trump's return to office, advisor Elon Musk described dismantling the agency as putting it 'through the woodchipper.' The 83% budget reduction risks reversing two decades of global health progress, according to Barcelona Institute for Global Health researcher Davide Rasella, a co-author of the study. The team analyzed data from 133 countries, finding USAID prevented 91 million deaths between 2001-2021. Their projections show current cuts could cause 700,000 annual child deaths. USAID-backed programmes reduced under-five mortality by 32% and overall deaths by 15%, with particularly strong results against HIV/AIDS (65% fewer deaths) and malaria. Germany, UK and France have since announced similar aid reductions. ISGlobal's Caterina Monti warned these EU cuts may compound fatalities. Researchers stress outcomes could improve if funding resumes, noting USAID previously cost Americans just 17 cents daily. As the Seville conference proceeds without US representation, co-author James Macinko of UCLA urged reconsideration: 'Most would support USAID if they knew how effectively small contributions save millions.'
The Independent
29-03-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Trump says US will help Myanmar after the earthquake – his cuts will make that difficult
President Trump pledged US support for Southeast Asia following a devastating earthquake, but his administration's previous foreign aid cuts could hinder the response. While offering assistance on Friday, the impact of reduced funding to USAID and the State Department remains a significant concern. Sarah Charles, a former senior USAID official during the Biden administration, expressed deep concern about the current state of disaster preparedness. She described the system as "in shambles," lacking the necessary personnel and resources for effective and timely disaster relief, such as rescuing survivors from collapsed structures. This raises questions about the US government's capacity to deliver on the President's promise of aid. A powerful quake shook Myanmar and neighboring Thailand on Friday, killing at least 150 people and burying others under the rubble of high-rises. Asked about the quake by reporters in Washington, Trump said: 'We're going to be helping. We've already alerted the people. Yeah, it's terrible what happened.' At the State Department, spokesperson Tammy Bruce told reporters the administration would use requests for assistance and reports from the region to shape its response to the quake. 'USAID has maintained a team of disaster experts with the capacity to respond if disaster strikes,' Bruce said. 'These expert teams provide immediate assistance, including food and safe drinking water, needed to save lives in the aftermath of a disaster.' Despite cuts, 'there has been no impact on our ability to perform those duties,' Bruce said. But it was also Friday that Secretary of State Marco Rubio and a former associate of Elon Musk now in a senior position at USAID, Jeremy Lewin, notified staff and Congress they were firing most remaining USAID staffers and moving surviving agency programs under the State Department. The Trump administration, working with Musk's teams, has gutted foreign assistance since Trump took office on Jan. 20. Mass firings and forced leaves and thousands of abrupt contract terminations have thrown much of the global aid and development work into crisis, with U.S. partners scrambling to fill the hole left by USAID and the billions of dollars owed for past work. After an earthquake in 2023 in Turkey and Syria, USAID-backed civilian teams from Los Angeles County and Fairfax County, Virginia, skilled in urban search and rescue scrambled to the scene to help recover any survivors from rubble. Those teams normally can be on their way within as few as 24 hours, Charles said. But while intervention by lawmakers and others kept the contracts for the civilian search-and-rescue teams intact, contracts for the special transport needed to get the search teams, dogs and heavy equipment to a disaster area are believed to have been cut, Charles said. Meanwhile, staffing cuts at USAID have 'decimated' the teams that normally would be coordinating with allies to target rescue and response efforts in the field, Charles said. Other foreign assistance contract cuts by the administration have hit disaster-response emergency services with the United Nations and others. —- AP Diplomatic Writer Matthew Lee contributed.
Russia Today
29-03-2025
- Business
- Russia Today
US State Department moves to formally dismantle USAID
The US State Department has formally notified Congress of its intent to 'undertake a reorganization' that would effectively dissolve the US Agency for International Development (USAID), Washington's primary funding channel for political projects abroad. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced on Friday that while foreign assistance can serve national interests, the high costs and limited benefits associated with USAID-backed programs prompted the decision to eliminate the majority of its initiatives. 'Unfortunately, USAID strayed from its original mission long ago… Thanks to President Trump, this misguided and fiscally irresponsible era is now over. We are reorienting our foreign assistance programs to align directly with what is best for the United States and our citizens,' Rubio said. READ MORE: USAID orders mass shredding of documents – Politico Rubio promised that truly 'essential lifesaving programs' aligning with the administration's America First priorities would be absorbed and carried on by the State Department, while the rest would be discontinued by July 1, 2025. President Donald Trump launched the process of dismantling USAID shortly after taking office in January. Since then, thousands of employees have been fired or placed on leave, and billions of dollars in aid contracts have been frozen or canceled altogether, as part of Trump's broader federal waste-cutting reform led by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). The remaining staff were notified on Friday that 'all non-statutory positions at USAID will be eliminated,' and that they would soon receive a termination date, either July 1 or September 2. A memo from Jeremy Lewin – the DOGE staffer-turned-deputy administrator of USAID – also warned personnel that they would not be automatically transferred to the State Department without 'a separate and independent hiring process.' READ MORE: USAID run by 'radical lunatics' – Trump The move to dismantle USAID and transfer its remnants under State Department control faced legal challenges, including a temporary freeze imposed by a federal judge last week. However, on Friday, the US Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled that DOGE had acted within its authority in reviewing and restructuring foreign aid programs. The court rejected arguments that the executive branch overstepped its bounds by altering a congressionally authorized agency, stating that Congress had not explicitly barred such reorganization. Trump previously accused the organization of being run by 'radical lunatics' and facilitating corruption 'at levels rarely seen before.' His federal government efficiency tsar, Elon Musk, referred to USAID as a 'criminal organization' and claimed that it had funded bioweapons research, among scores of other controversial programs. READ MORE: USAID funded Ukrainian group that smeared Vance – Grayzone The revelations about USAID's links to secretive initiatives and ' financing radical elements throughout the world' validate concerns long expressed by Russia, Moscow's ambassador to the UN, Vassily Nebenzia, said last month. Other foreign leaders have also questioned USAID's role in their domestic affairs. Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico voiced concerns over what he described as potential ' gross interference ' in his country's political landscape. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban similarly emphasized the need to ' eliminate these foreign networks ' that interfere in domestic politics.
Boston Globe
29-03-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Trump says the US will help in Asia quake. A former official says the system is now in ‘shambles.'
A powerful quake shook Myanmar and neighboring Thailand on Friday, killing at least 150 people and burying others under the rubble of high-rises. Advertisement Asked about the quake by reporters in Washington, Trump said: 'We're going to be helping. We've already alerted the people. Yeah, it's terrible what happened.' Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up At the State Department, spokesperson Tammy Bruce told reporters the administration would use requests for assistance and reports from the region to shape its response to the quake. 'USAID has maintained a team of disaster experts with the capacity to respond if disaster strikes,' Bruce said. 'These expert teams provide immediate assistance, including food and safe drinking water, needed to save lives in the aftermath of a disaster.' Despite cuts, 'there has been no impact on our ability to perform those duties,' Bruce said. Related : But it was also Friday that Secretary of State Marco Rubio and a former associate of Elon Musk now in a senior position at USAID, Jeremy Lewin, notified staff and Congress they were firing most remaining USAID staffers and moving surviving agency programs under the State Department. The Trump administration, working with Musk's teams, has After an earthquake in 2023 in Turkey and Syria, USAID-backed civilian teams from Los Angeles County and Fairfax County, Virginia, skilled in urban search and rescue scrambled to the scene to help recover any survivors from rubble. Advertisement Those teams normally can be on their way within as few as 24 hours, Charles said. But while intervention by lawmakers and others kept the contracts for the civilian search-and-rescue teams intact, contracts for the special transport needed to get the search teams, dogs and heavy equipment to a disaster area are believed to have been cut, Charles said. Meanwhile, staffing cuts at USAID have 'decimated' the teams that normally would be coordinating with allies to target rescue and response efforts in the field, Charles said. Other foreign assistance contract cuts by the administration have hit disaster-response emergency services with the United Nations and others. AP Diplomatic Writer Matthew Lee contributed.
