What is USAID?
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is the international humanitarian and development arm of the U.S. government. Established in 1961, USAID has been a cornerstone of American foreign policy and global influence for over six decades:
- USAID has been the world's largest single donor of humanitarian aid
- It operated in more than 60 countries and funded numerous grassroots organizations
- The agency managed a budget of approximately $40-43 billion annually
- USAID was responsible for the world's gold-standard famine detection system
- It was one of the largest funders of global health programs, including HIV/AIDS treatment and polio vaccinations
Beyond humanitarian assistance, USAID has been a key instrument of American soft power and international influence, providing strategic stability in volatile regions and countering Chinese and Russian influence in developing nations.
The Current Crisis
In January 2025, the Trump administration initiated a devastating series of actions against USAID:
- On January 20, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order freezing foreign aid funding for a 90-day review
- Elon Musk, heading the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), announced plans to "shut down" USAID entirely
- By February 2025, the administration had terminated approximately 90% of USAID's foreign aid contracts
- Thousands of "stop-work" orders went out to employees and contractors
- The USAID website was taken offline and employees placed on leave, with many terminated
- Humanitarian programs worldwide were halted with little to no transition planning
This abrupt dismantling of USAID has created a global humanitarian crisis of unprecedented scale, with devastating impacts across multiple continents.
The Human Impact
The termination of USAID programs is already having catastrophic effects on vulnerable populations worldwide:
- PEPFAR (President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief), which had saved approximately 26 million lives since 2003, has been effectively shuttered, leaving HIV patients without access to life-saving treatments
- In Afghanistan alone, the absence of US support is projected to result in 1,200 additional maternal deaths and 109,000 additional unintended pregnancies between 2025-2028
- In Sudan, where half the population of 50 million needs food aid, the USAID suspension has halted national food programs serving millions and shuttered hundreds of community kitchens
- Humanitarian experts warn that without USAID's intervention, millions of people in extreme levels of hunger could die of starvation by the end of the year
- Healthcare facilities across multiple countries, particularly in Africa, have been forced to close, leaving communities without access to essential medical services
- In Mexico, shelters for migrants have been left without doctors, and mental health support programs for LGBTQ+ youth have been disbanded
"We are being pushed off a cliff."
— Dr. Kate Rees, public health specialist fighting HIV in South Africa
The humanitarian impacts extend beyond individual suffering to threaten regional stability, increase migration pressures, and create long-term health security risks that will ultimately affect American interests and security.
Strategic Implications
Beyond the immediate humanitarian crisis, the dismantling of USAID has serious strategic implications for American leadership and security:
- Creates a power vacuum that rival nations like China and Russia are eager to fill
- Damages America's international standing and diplomatic relationships built over decades
- Undermines stability in strategically important regions
- Reduces American influence in areas of geopolitical competition
- Creates conditions for increased migration, terrorism, and health security threats
- Sacrifices decades of institutional knowledge and relationships that cannot be easily rebuilt
The gutting of USAID represents a historically unprecedented withdrawal of American leadership from the world stage, with consequences that will reverberate for decades to come.