Over the weekend, aid in the United States fell deeper into crisis. Elon Musk, the richest man in the world and the head of the powerful, newly created Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, spent Sunday night tweeting about how he planned to dismantle USAID.
With rumors swirling that the world’s largest aid agency will be closed altogether, we look over the funding at risk.
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USAID going under?
As I write, the doors are closed at USAID. Its website is down. Its social media accounts are gone. Its senior leaders have already been told not to show up for work. With some exceptions, the aid it delivers remains frozen. At USAID and its partner organizations, layoffs number in the thousands.
Last week, we tried to identify how much funding has been placed at risk, at USAID and other funders, by the aid freeze.
We identified that $4 billion of funding was obligated by USAID during the second quarter of the last fiscal year. A similar amount would have been expected to be obligated in the second quarter of this fiscal year — a period that overlaps closely with the aid freeze.
Read: USAID funding explained — what’s at risk under Trump? (Pro)
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Funding activity
We publish tenders, grants, and other funding announcements on our Funding Platform. Here are some of the ones that have been viewed the most in the past 10 days.
The Asian Development Bank signed a $100 million financing package to support an electric mobility ecosystem in the Philippines.
German funder BMZ invites contractors to provide technical assistance and expertise for a sustainable tourism development project in Armenia.
The European Commission announced an initial €60 million ($62.5 million) in humanitarian assistance for displaced populations in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The U.K. Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office is seeking service contractors to support the occupied Palestinian territories independent monitoring, evaluation and learning, or OPTIMEL, project.
The International Finance Corporation has announced a $150 million loan to provide small-scale residential solar systems in Brazil.
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Aid for AIDS
While most U.S. aid spending remains frozen, some waivers have been issued by the U.S. State Department, particularly for “life-saving humanitarian assistance.” For days, confusion has reigned about what that means, and particularly whether it allows the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR, to continue to fund treatment for HIV and AIDS.
PEPFAR has now received a memo, granting it the right to continue implementing “urgent life-saving HIV treatment services,” although there still isn’t total clarity over which programs can continue.
Exclusive: Some PEPFAR programs get waiver to restart operations
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Thousands of layoffs
The head of one aid organization, in a call with staff members, predicted that thousands of Washington, D.C., aid workers will be laid off by this week.
Torge Gerlach, CEO of DT Global, said that many or most competitors were furloughing or retrenching 80 to 85% of their staff. Other professionals working in the sector have told Devex they fear these numbers may be an underestimate.
Meanwhile, at USAID, staffing cuts have also continued. Hundreds are confirmed to have been furloughed, although my colleague Elissa Miolene tells me the figures are likely now into the thousands. Early last week, almost 60 members of the top leadership were sent home, and since then, the director of security and legislative staff have been placed on leave, as has the director of labor.
Exclusive: Up to 3,000 DC aid workers laid off by next week, CEO says
Scoop: USAID director of security, legislative staff placed on leave
Plus: USAID official who fought ‘illegal’ purge is pushed out of agency
+ Having trouble keeping up with all the staffing and development work upheavals caused by the funding freeze? We’ve created an essential guide to track the impact for you. Check it out here.
Can anyone survive 90 days?
Meanwhile, the mood within the aid sector is somber, with many aid workers questioning if their organizations can survive a 90-day freeze.
“It feels like being in a boxing ring with multiple opponents, trying to figure out where the next blow is going to come from,” the leader of one humanitarian agency tells Devex.
Read: ‘I don’t think anyone can survive for 90 days’ — aid’s grim new reality
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About the author
David Ainsworth@daveainsworth4
David Ainsworth is business editor at Devex, where he writes about finance and funding issues for development institutions. He was previously a senior writer and editor for magazines specializing in nonprofits in the U.K. and worked as a policy and communications specialist in the nonprofit sector for a number of years. His team specializes in understanding reports and data and what it teaches us about how development functions.
