Within hours of taking office, President Donald Trump issued an executive order that shut down foreign aid with the stroke of a pen — freezing nearly all international assistance while his administration conducted a 90-day review.
The pause has led to medications sitting on shelves, food rotting at ports, and millions of people cut off from lifesaving assistance. And while nearly all programs have been suspended, hundreds of others have been terminated entirely.
“Your award has been reviewed for programmatic efficiency and consistency with United States foreign policy,” stated one termination notice, which was sent to a former USAID partner earlier this month. “Please confirm receipt.”
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About the author
Elissa Miolene
Elissa Miolene reports on USAID and the U.S. government at Devex. She previously covered education at The San Jose Mercury News, and has written for outlets like The Wall Street Journal, San Francisco Chronicle, Washingtonian magazine, among others. Before shifting to journalism, Elissa led communications for humanitarian agencies in the United States, East Africa, and South Asia.
