The hits — the painful kind — keep on coming for the U.S. federal workforce, including USAID. The latest target in President Donald Trump’s sights: Diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility, or DEIA.
Also in today’s edition: Europe isn’t making aid advocates who feel dejected by Trump any happier.
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DEIA adieu
Agencies across the U.S. federal government have officially been put on alert: DEIA is a thing of the past. But the Trump administration’s orders to shut down these programs and offices go even further — by asking workers to report on DEIA in “disguise.”
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“As we work together to implement an America First agenda, we understand there might have been some efforts by individuals to rebrand these offices, positions, programs, contracts, and grants,” Jason Gray, USAID’s acting administrator, wrote in an internal message sent on Wednesday to staff and seen by my colleague Michael Igoe.
The memo instructs staff who are aware of efforts “to obscure the connection between the contract or grant and DEIA or similar ideologies” made since the U.S. election on Nov. 5, 2024, to report these to the email address DEIAtruth@opm.gov within 10 days.
It notes that there will be no “adverse consequences” for timely reporting, but that failure to report could result in “disciplinary action.”
One USAID employee tells Devex they were not aware of attempts to conceal these programs. Another doubted that anyone would report them.
Read: USAID threatens 'disciplinary action' in DEIA crackdown
ICYMI: USAID employees told to ‘pause’ public communications
+ Catch up on all the latest news and developments with our U.S. aid coverage.
Bid players
Like I said, the hits keep on coming for USAID. Trump’s orders are vague and likely to meet legal resistance. But another lawsuit, long predating Trump, could also have high-stakes implications for how the U.S. aid agency spends its billions.
In deciding how it funds development projects around the world, one of the biggest distinctions the agency makes is whether it seeks to procure goods or services — which typically requires a contract — or whether it seeks to fund an organization to advance its own mission — which typically requires a grant or cooperative agreement.
Generally speaking, for-profit companies win more contracts, while nonprofit organizations win more grants and cooperative agreements. But some for-profits think the arrangement is flawed.
The BroadReach Health Development for-profit has filed a lawsuit alleging that USAID chose the wrong instrument to fund an HIV/AIDS program in South Africa — which it had hoped to bid on. The for-profit argued that the agency’s decision to opt for a cooperative agreement, rather than having bidders compete for a contract, violates U.S. procurement law and should be reversed by the court, Michael writes.
Not everyone agrees. One longtime USAID procurement expert tells Michael that the allegations in the lawsuit are unconvincing. The agency does have significant flexibility when it comes to choosing which funding instrument to use, and its decisions generally reflect complex, nuanced policies that tend to get oversimplified in public discourse, says Olga Wall, founder and CEO of Avallon Consulting.
Wall said that where USAID often falls short is in transparency and clear communication about why it chose one funding instrument over another. However, she does not buy the argument that USAID is purposefully using grants and cooperative agreements to avoid competition.
“They would have to be super organized, and they're not organized enough to be the mafia,” she says. “This lawsuit should be thrown out.”
Read: Lawsuit alleges illegal grantmaking by USAID (Pro)
Related: Will bidding for USAID contracts be different under Trump? (Pro)
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Single all the way?
Let’s turn to Europe, where aid advocates are likely to find themselves equally demoralized. That’s because the European Union is sparking anxiety with plans to merge funding for development spending, humanitarian aid, and assistance to neighboring nations seeking to join the bloc — all into a “single instrument,” according to a confidential document seen by my colleague Rob Merrick.
The goal? Streamlining bureaucracy under the new European Commission. The reality? Aid groups fear it could mean fewer resources for those in need.
Civil society organizations fear the single instrument would lead to a repeat of the 2024 controversy that saw €2 billion (then worth $2.17 billion) shifted from development aid to help fund the EU’s crackdown on unauthorized migration.
Civil society organizations are concerned that with minimal ring-fencing of funds, less detailed programming, and less transparency, money might be diverted toward border security and migration management as part of the EU’s efforts to counter a surge of support for far-right, anti-immigrant parties.
The proposal follows Devex’s report that the EU is considering consolidating management of its foreign aid in 18 regional hubs instead of embedding development experts with delegations in individual countries, also prompting fears of lower-quality development work.
Revealed: EU plan to merge aid funds raises fears of potential cuts (Pro)
ICYMI: EU wants development staff in regional hubs, not delegations (Pro)
Adapt or die
Official development assistance, or ODA, is changing — rapidly. “Yet the list of the largest international NGOs has largely remained unchanged despite tectonic geopolitical, economic, and technological change,” writes Paul Ronalds, CEO at Save the Children Global Ventures, in a Devex opinion piece.
Ronalds would know. Save the Children emerged in the aftermath of World War I way back in 1919. The International Committee of the Red Cross goes back even further — all the way to 1863.
Ronalds writes that “despite endless predictions of their decline, [INGOs] have instead continued to grow,” noting that since the turn of the century, they “have thrived off the back of increasing official development assistance.”
But it’s a post-ODA world, Ronalds writes. Donors are increasingly seeking to leverage private investment alongside traditional aid, while innovations like artificial intelligence could revolutionize humanitarian work.
“Yet in my experience, far too few INGOs are engaged in genuine soul-searching. I've seen how insiders remain firmly in control, resistant to the radical rethink required to adapt to the changing environment — perhaps hoping that the financial pressures will change over time,” he writes, warning that INGOs will need to evolve to survive — and thrive.
“To paraphrase Charles Darwin, it is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but the one that is most responsive to change.”
Opinion: As a CEO at an INGO, I know we need to adapt or die
Related: What is the future of the INGO? (Pro)
Setting up shop at COP
Brazil has announced that André Corrêa do Lago will serve as the president of the 30th U.N. Climate Change Conference, or COP30, set to take place in November in Belém. With nearly four decades of diplomatic experience, do Lago has held key roles as Brazil’s ambassador to India and Japan, headed the energy and environment departments at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and served as chief negotiator for Brazil at COP28 and COP29.
The announcement dashed hopes that Environment Minister Marina Silva might take the role, which would have made her the first female COP president since 2019. Brazil did, however, tap Ana Toni, an economist and the Environment Ministry’s secretary for climate change, as COP30’s executive director.
Do Lago’s job won’t be easy, as he grapples with the pending U.S. withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement “We are still analyzing President Trump’s announcements, but there is no doubt they will have a significant impact on preparation for COP30,” he said on Tuesday.
ICYMI: Paris Agreement in peril as Trump reenters White House
In other news
Some 178,000 people have been displaced in the last two weeks, as rebel group M23 advances toward Goma in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. [AP]
UNAIDS chief Winnie Byanyima criticized World Bank-funded private hospitals in Africa and Asia following a Bloomberg investigation revealing some of these health institutions refuse to treat patients unless they can prove ability to pay or keep them from leaving until they settle their medical bills. [Bloomberg]
Thousands of refugees and asylum-seekers bound for the U.S. have had their trips cancelled after U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order that pauses the country’s resettlement program indefinitely. [New York Times]
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About the author
Anna Gawel
Anna Gawel is the Managing Editor of Devex. She previously worked as the managing editor of The Washington Diplomat, the flagship publication of D.C.’s diplomatic community. She’s had hundreds of articles published on world affairs, U.S. foreign policy, politics, security, trade, travel and the arts on topics ranging from the impact of State Department budget cuts to Caribbean efforts to fight climate change. She was also a broadcast producer and digital editor at WTOP News and host of the Global 360 podcast. She holds a journalism degree from the University of Maryland in College Park.
