As President Donald Trump released his “skinny budget” outlining his top priorities on Thursday, leaders at development organizations, advocacy shops and on Capitol Hill were working overtime to figure out how best to tackle unprecedented cuts.
The budget proposes cuts of 28 percent to the base budget for the State Department and USAID, along with 37 percent cuts to the Overseas Contingency Operations fund, which is used to fund disaster response and emergency needs.
The budget proposes steep cuts that have been described by congressional and NGO leaders as “narrow-minded,” “small-hearted” and “disastrous,” although it is unlikely to be approved by Congress without significant changes. While the final budget will likely look quite different, many note that this blueprint provides a glimpse into how the Trump administration views foreign aid.
Read more on U.S. aid under Trump:
► Trump's international climate budget: 'We're not spending money on that anymore'
► UN calls for continued engagement as Trump budget aims to slash funding
► Trump's foreign aid budget: The response on Twitter
► Trump's 'America first' budget slashes foreign aid, multilateral funding
About the authors
Adva Saldinger@AdvaSal
Adva Saldinger is a Senior Reporter at Devex where she covers development finance, as well as U.S. foreign aid policy. Adva explores the role the private sector and private capital play in development and authors the weekly Devex Invested newsletter bringing the latest news on the role of business and finance in addressing global challenges. A journalist with more than 10 years of experience, she has worked at several newspapers in the U.S. and lived in both Ghana and South Africa.
Michael Igoe@AlterIgoe
Michael Igoe is a Senior Reporter with Devex, based in Washington, D.C. He covers U.S. foreign aid, global health, climate change, and development finance. Prior to joining Devex, Michael researched water management and climate change adaptation in post-Soviet Central Asia, where he also wrote for EurasiaNet. Michael earned his bachelor's degree from Bowdoin College, where he majored in Russian, and his master’s degree from the University of Montana, where he studied international conservation and development.
