Most USAID staff cut from agency, marking end of world’s largest donor

The USAID website has been broken for days — but on Tuesday night, it was rebooted for what seems like the final time. White screen, black text, USAID logo, and a message that states nearly all USAID direct hires will be placed on administrative leave on Friday, Feb. 7. “All USAID direct hire personnel will be placed on administrative leave globally, with the exception of designated personnel responsible for mission-critical functions, core leadership and specially designated programs,” the website reads. “Essential personnel expected to continue working will be informed by Agency leadership by Thursday, February 6, at 3:00pm.” It’s the final gutting of the U.S. aid agency that two weeks ago employed more than 10,000 people across the world. In fiscal year 2023, USAID spent $40 billion across more than 130 countries, a sum that totaled less than 1% of America’s federal budget. It fed tens of millions of people, responded to disasters and conflicts, and provided millions more with critical health care, economic support, and more. But ever since President Donald Trump returned to office last month, the agency has been sliced apart a little more each day. First, a foreign aid pause. Then, a stop-work order. Thousands of staff members were placed on administrative leave, and thousands more were locked out of their accounts. By Friday night, there will be hardly anyone left at USAID — an agency that was once the largest bilateral donor in the world. “Thank you for your service,” the website now states. Staff members posted outside of the United States will be pulled from the countries they’re currently based in, with the website stating the Department of State is "currently preparing a plan” for employees’ return trips to the U.S. within 30 days. The State Department will also “provide for the termination” of institutional support contractors and personal service contractors “that are not determined to be essential.” These contract staff, who work under two types of employment arrangements, had already been severed from the agency — with many telling Devex they received no warning, information, or notice before being summarily locked out of all USAID systems. For many, that meant having no information about whether to return home from a war zone, or whether they’d even have a job the following day. “Let history remember that USAID went down first, fighting until the very last second,” one USAID staff member told Devex on Tuesday night. Senior Reporter Adva Saldinger contributed to this story. Update, Feb. 4, 2025: The headline of this story has been updated.