The latest news, in-depth analysis, and exclusive insights on how the Trump administration's policies are reshaping global development.
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What does Trump’s just-passed “big, beautiful bill” mean for global development? Plus, an accounting of Canadian aid dollars, and the creative solutions two U.N. agencies are putting in place to stem the impact of aid cuts.
The so-called non-profit killer clause is out, while a tax on remittances is in.
The U.S. Agency for International Development is formally part of the State Department. The debate over America's interest in fighting poverty and disease has yet to begin.
The potential cuts are happening just as the department tries to absorb the functions of USAID.
Experts describe the U.S. State Department takeover of USAID as an “impending trainwreck,” citing the department's lack of readiness and expertise. Plus, complaints and compliments at the Financing for Development conference in Sevilla.
On the day the State Department is set to absorb the remnants of USAID, veteran development leaders described the transition as a major step backward for U.S. global development efforts in an event for Devex Pro members.
The "America First" agenda of Trump's second presidential term has undermined achievements from his first term in areas such as international religious freedom, women’s economic empowerment, and trade.
Lawmakers from both parties raised alarm over cuts to global health and foreign aid programs, questioning the administration’s authority to rescind congressionally approved funds.
U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said the U.S. is cutting funding to support Gavi’s work to vaccinate children in lower-income countries. But can the Trump administration do that?
Marocco has been at the helm of USADF since early March — though his role there has been disputed ever since he arrived.
Elon Musk claimed U.S. aid officials refused to produce evidence of their results. Then he destroyed all of the records showing U.S. aid results, eliminating a body of knowledge that could have been mined to transform the agency.
The Trump administration's withdrawal sets the stage for the broader U.N. membership to approve a declaration for formal adoption in Spain.
The emotional and psychological fallout of USAID and NGOs mass layoffs and project cancellations. Plus, the U.S. opts to skip Bonn climate talks, and Ajay Banga's message on the urgent need for job creation.
A clash of organizational cultures and missions looms as the State Department is set to take over what’s left of USAID.
At a Senate forum, lawmakers and experts warned that cutting food aid abroad could leave American farms blinder, weaker, and more exposed to global threats.
Improving messaging around foreign aid; tackling security problems at their source; and achieving full gender parity in 123 years.
If passed in the Senate, the legislation would cancel $900 million in global health spending alone.
American negotiators proposed hundreds of amendments aimed at reversing prior commitments to achieving U.N. Sustainable Development Goals.
Cases such as this illustrate the far-reaching impacts of the Trump administration's reshuffling of foreign aid, even when funding persists.
The U.S. government terminated 44 of its grants to UNFPA, which provides sexual and reproductive health services to people living in the lowest-resource settings around the world.
A look at the Trump administration's 2026 budget; Bono blasts USAID aid cuts, and former USAID staff host a spirited fundraiser.
While a spokesperson from the House Committee on Foreign Affairs said a draft chart was just an “illustrative tool," it signals that Capitol Hill is beginning to collaborate on what the future of the State Department may look like.
As development aid shrinks, the U.S. proposal to tax remittances could cut off critical support to low-income countries and deepen global inequality.
The Trump administration looks to rescind $900 million allocated for global health; the Pandemic Fund touts a new global health funding model; and the African Medicines Agency gets its first director-general.
Gone are development, humanitarian, and global health funds; they are replaced by “America First” accounts focused on “strategic investments” such as repatriations and countering China. Plus, the U.S. and China clash at a U.N. board meeting.
The proposal provides more detail on the administration's plans for foreign aid, which would amount to an 85% drop in spending if everything the government asks for is granted by Congress.
What's on the chopping block in the Trump administration's $9.4 billion rescission request, and what’s going on with Gavi’s board?
This includes zeroing out funding for Gavi and cuts to PEPFAR and the President’s Malaria Initiative. It also slashes support for family planning, reproductive health, neglected tropical diseases, and nonemergency nutrition.
Trump’s rescission package would pull billions of dollars in funds already approved by the U.S. Congress.
Tim Meisburger left USAID's Bureau of Humanitarian Assistance days after it was officially merged with the State Department.
U.S. and China face off over population policy and aid cuts.
Thousands of Jordanian aid workers and dozens of national nonprofits are grappling with the sudden loss of U.S. funding.
Adding a board member could be perceived as a sign of future U.S. engagement with the organization that provides vaccines to lower-income countries. But Trump's budget request zeroes out Gavi funding.
U.S. plan creates high-level foreign aid chief, but Democrats say it guts vital programs and undercuts U.S. role in the world.
The funding cuts to NOAA have weakened the U.S.’ ability to produce lifesaving weather forecasts for its own citizens and affected the quality of climate reports being produced globally.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio gets grilled on USAID's dismantling; UNAIDS wants to help Elon Musk 'fix' funding for HIV services; and the Trump administration teases a new summit with African leaders.
Edesia and Mana can now begin producing around $50 million worth of RUTF, or about 1.4 million boxes, between the two nonprofits. That means three to six months of operation for both facilities.
U.S. President Donald Trump's signature tax proposal has passed the House, but without a clause that would have given the executive branch unilateral discretion to target nonprofits' tax-exempt status. Plus, we profile AfDB's presidential candidates.
Those against the bill are breathing a sigh of relief — but warn that it's unlikely the clause will disappear for too long.
"We're almost to June and there are no alternative programs to replace the ones cut," said Dan Twining, the head of the International Republican Institute. "Respectfully, what is the plan?”
The U.S. has quietly shifted its disaster response from USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Affairs, raising questions about America’s ability to respond quickly and effectively to global crises.
One lawmaker displayed posters of individuals who have reportedly died because of the sweeping U.S. aid cuts — which Marco Rubio labeled “false.” Plus, the next era of global health at WHA78, and Rwanda’s pitch to the cash-strapped United Nations.
The Secretary of State Marco Rubio repeatedly told lawmakers that "no one had died" as a result of the Trump administration's sweeping cuts to USAID, stating reported deaths in Myanmar and South Sudan were "false."
Appearing before the U.S. Senate foreign relations and appropriations committees, Secretary of State Marco Rubio defended USAID cuts and reforms as necessary while promising not to walk away from foreign aid.
Two former USAID administrators delivered a powerful bipartisan defense of the agency’s workforce, condemning the Trump administration’s dismantling of what was once the largest aid agency in the world.
Rwanda, Qatar, and others make offers to house financially strapped U.N. agencies.
Here is the latest on the court cases we’re tracking, and where they stand on the legal docket to date.
The 102-page opinion will have the effect of undoing the “unlawful” firings of USIP board members and the resulting actions, including the transfer of USIP’s iconic D.C. property.
USAID staffers are racing against a tight deadline for coveted roles at the State Department.
U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz criticizes Marco Rubio for his stance on foreign policy; WEF wants ECB President Christine Lagarde to take over from Klaus Schwab, and WFP chief Cindy McCain makes a plea for food planes.
For the latest episode of our podcast series, Devex Senior Reporter Adva Saldinger sits down with Managing Editor Anna Gawel and Senior Global Health Reporter Jenny Lei Ravelo to discuss the top global development stories from the past week.
The Trump administration has canceled or suspended dozens of programs to provide HIV services to the most marginalized communities. The people running those programs say lives are now at risk.
A pair of U.N. insiders opine on the meaning of a Trump presidency for the world body.
Philanthropies are bracing for impact as Trump's tax bill advances in the House of Representatives.
U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres proposes steep cuts in the agency's spending, staff, and programs.
Bill Gates is stepping up and giving away nearly all of his wealth; the first American pope is elected; and a look at President Trump's proposed skinny budget.
DAI, which was USAID’s second-largest contract recipient last year, has received termination notices for 85 of its 91 prime contracts.
The billionaire philanthropist announced he will give 99% of his fortune — currently $168 billion — to his foundation, which will double its budget to $200 billion before shutting down in 2045. Plus, a new pope is elected, and 100 days of Trump.
The United States is in talks with former WFP chief, David Beasley, to help lead the humanitarian response in Gaza.
For the latest episode of our podcast series, Rumbi Chakamba sits down with Sara Jerving and Elissa Miolene to discuss the top global development stories of the week.
In just 100 days, Trump has dismantled most of USAID, slashing 85% of its programs and gutting its staff. As foreign aid collapses and priorities shift, Devex unpacks what’s left, what’s next, and who might fill the void.
The U.S. says electing Palestinian envoy Riyad Mansour as the U.N. General Assembly president for 2026-2027 would derail peace efforts and trigger even steeper congressional funding cuts to the U.N. Plus, the latest from the 2025 Milken conference.
After months of halted payments, USAID partners briefly saw funding resume in March — but now, those payments are stalling once more.
The Trump administration launches a diplomatic campaign to deny Palestine a leadership post at the U.N.
A signed form from the U.S. State Department’s Jeremy Lewin is what’s delaying over 400,000 boxes of food aid from being shipped. Plus, what Trump’s budget proposal means for food aid, and ADB’s new $26 billion investment in food systems.
Boxes of emergency food meant for malnourished children are trapped in American warehouses as USAID stalls under a gutted foreign aid system.
U.S. aid cuts have been widely criticized — and with good reason. But plenty of Africans believe there were already problems with aid before the cuts.
Evaluating the impact of 100 days of Trump on global development; the Gates Foundation turns 25 amid a rapidly changing aid environment; MCC in the crosshairs; and what will happen to USAID's memorial wall?
The Trump administration proposes a budget for fiscal year 2026 that would see a roughly 84% cut in foreign aid if a rescission of already appropriated funds is granted in addition to other cuts. Plus, Bill Gates offers rare public comments on U.S. aid cuts.
The budget request would make massive cuts to global health, humanitarian aid, and core economic and development work.
The U.N. is urging its agencies in Geneva and New York to save costs by moving its staffers to cheaper cities and eliminating redundant roles. Plus, Trump taps a new U.N. envoy and Marco Rubio gets more work to do.
At a hearing Wednesday, lawmakers debated the State Department’s reorganization plan — one that Democrats, but not Republicans, say was launched without congressional input.
Meanwhile, Marco Rubio now holds four top roles within the Trump administration, making him the first official in decades to serve as both secretary of state and national security adviser concurrently.
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have sprung to GFA’s defense — and from Congress to civil society to the State Department itself, many are still trying to keep what is today one of the last bipartisan aid efforts alive.
The memo is the latest in the U.N.'s efforts to cut costs and find efficiencies as it faces financial headwinds.
In just three months, more than 80% of USAID’s programs have been terminated, and with no clear signal from Washington on what comes next, the humanitarian community is bracing for continued, systems-level disruption.
Three months after Donald Trump announced a pause on foreign aid, there is still no recovery plan in sight. Devex talked to those on the front line of development to find out how they had been affected by the cuts.
The cuts “will affect our operations, the size of our organization, and, most worryingly, the very people we are called to protect,” UNHCR chief Filippo Grandi wrote in an internal email.
USAID’s new top 15 implementers; MCC under attack; and everything from the World Bank and IMF Spring Meetings.
More consultants, lower morale, and poor pay — career coaches and consultants predict how the dismantling of USAID will impact the development talent landscape.
This latest analysis shows how potential U.S. policy changes could severely impact global human rights funding.
For the latest episode of our podcast series, David Ainsworth sits down with Adva Saldinger and Jesse Chase-Lubitz to discuss the top global development stories from the past week.
Much of the funding was meant to help would-be migrants stay where they are, which could hurt U.S. interests in the long run as the aid cuts end programs that deterred irregular migration.
A White House budget proposal for the HHS seen by Devex shows funding for programs that help investigate outbreaks globally and provides research training to U.S. and foreign scientists working in low- and middle-income countries are being eliminated.
The uncertainty surrounding potential tariffs may be more damaging than the tariffs themselves, drying up liquidity and forcing painful choices for indebted nations, experts say.
The institutions have let “mission creep” push them off course but the U.S. will push them to get back to their core mission and make some reforms.
While the exact future is uncertain, staff and programs will be cut, maybe nearly entirely, sources say.
In a briefing to member states, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the senior leadership team will be reduced from 12 to seven. WHO departments will also significantly downsize from 76 to 34.
“To deliver on President Trump’s America First foreign policy, we must make the State Department Great Again,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday.
“We don’t know how credible it is,” says Robert Wood, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. But even so, he added, “it makes our allies and friends wonder: What is going on back in Washington?”
The persistent speculation that President Trump will take action against perceived adversarial nonprofits is becoming more pronounced. Plus, a rumored reorganization of the State Department.
