The U.S. foreign aid funding pause has disrupted over 507,000 metric tons of food aid, valued at more than $340 million — despite the existence of a waiver for emergency food assistance, according to an email from the World Food Programme to the U.S. Agency for International Development seen by Devex.
The correspondence does not specify how much of this aid is WFP’s, but the figures align with those previously reported by Devex, which noted that the food could have fed at least 36 million people.
The story reported by Devex highlighted the scale of the disruption, with food aid stranded at ports or stalled in supply chains while hunger crises accelerate worldwide. The funding pause affects critical humanitarian operations in countries facing acute food insecurity, including Ethiopia, Sudan, and Afghanistan. Without these shipments, millions of people in conflict zones, drought-stricken regions, and refugee camps may see severe disruptions to critical food assistance programs they rely on for survival.
About the author
Ayenat Mersie
Ayenat Mersie is a Global Development Reporter for Devex. Previously, she worked as a freelance journalist for publications such as National Geographic and Foreign Policy and as an East Africa correspondent for Reuters.
