Who’s still standing? USAID’s new top 15 implementers

In March, the U.S. government published a leaked list of awards, which showed the USAID projects the government shuttered and those it intended to retain. In total, 898 awards were left active. Over the past weeks, we have conducted a series of reviews and looked at USAID’s terminated awards. Now, we turn our attention to the remaining active awards — how much is left to be potentially spent, and by whom? The active awards had a total estimated cost of $78 billion, of which $69.7 billion has already been obligated — that is, assigned to be spent. This leaves $8.3 billion unobligated. In this analysis, we look at that last figure — total unobligated funding. This gives an indication of which organizations can still earn the most in the future. Unobligated funding isn’t a perfect indication of how much money an organization might receive in the future. In part, that’s because obligated indicates that funding is promised. Some money might have been obligated but not yet disbursed — promised, but not spent, in other words. It’s also because there’s nothing saying the government has to obligate all of the total estimated cost. Indeed, the government very often spends less. The total estimated cost is intended to be a ceiling, not a mean. Still, looking at the remaining active unobligated funding gives us a reasonable estimate of the potential amount of money the organization might still receive in the future. Overall, we identified 15 organizations with at least $100 million of active unobligated funding. Among them, four are for-profit, eight are nonprofit, two are multilaterals, and one is a U.S. government agency. Their total unobligated funding amounts to $5.9 billion, or around 71% of the $8.3 billion unobligated One last thing to say is that the figures in the State Department document are disputed by more than one NGO, so these figures may not always be entirely accurate. We reached out to these organizations to verify the numbers from the leaked document, and we will update the article as we receive confirmation. Notably absent from the list are three of USAID’s long-standing top recipient multilaterals: the World Bank’s International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, and the World Food Programme. Although the three multilaterals retained several of USAID’s largest active awards, they all have already been obligated: $28.4 billion of obligated active amount to IBRD, $13.4 billion to the Global Fund, and $3.4 billion to WFP. 1. Chemonics Total number of active awards: Seven Total estimated cost of active awards: $11.4 billion Percentage of obligated active awards: 81% Total active unobligated amount: $2.2 billion Total potential revenue before termination: $3.3 billion Percentage of potential revenue left: 64.6% Despite the massive terminations, Chemonics still leads the list of USAID contractors with the largest unobligated active amount, worth $2.2 billion. Among its seven active awards, the biggest is an indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity, or IDIQ, contract under the Global Health Supply Chain-Procurement and Supply Management, or GHSC-PSM, program. The IDIQ’s total estimated cost is $7.6 billion, and the remaining unobligated amount is $1.2 billion, which means that around 84% has already been obligated. The contract end date is 2026. Chemonics also retained $800.8 million in unobligated funding through the President’s Malaria Initiative, which was launched in 2005 to combat malaria in high-burden countries. Its total estimated cost is nearly $3.3 billion, with 75.7% already obligated. A Devex analysis revealed that the U.S. provided virtually all the aid disbursement for malaria-related activities among Development Assistance Committee member countries in 2023. 2. FHI 360 Total number of active awards: 16 Total estimated cost of active awards: $2.2 billion Percentage of obligated active: 65% Total active unobligated amount: $783.5 million Total potential revenue before termination: $2.1 billion Percentage of potential revenue left: 36.6% FHI 360 retains around a third of its potential total revenue after USAID’s terminations. The biggest active award is the Meeting Targets and Maintaining Epidemic Control, or EpiC, project, an eight-year initiative for HIV, global health security, COVID-19, and mpox. FHI 360 leads the implementation of EpiC, along with other partners, including Right to Care, Palladium, and Population Services International. EpiC is jointly funded by USAID and the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR. The project’s total estimated cost is over $1.3 billion, with $420.4 million in unobligated funding. 3. Abt Global Total number of active awards: Three Total estimated cost of active awards: $1 billion Percentage of obligated active: 33.7% Total active unobligated amount: $695.5 million Total potential revenue before termination: $878.5 million Percentage of potential revenue left: 79.2% Abt Global retained much of its potential revenue from USAID. Among its active awards, $656.5 million in unobligated amount is for the Malaria Prevention through Vector Control, or PMVS, contract, while $39 million in unobligated amount goes to the Efficiencies for Clinical HIV Outcomes, or ECHO, activity in Mozambique. Abt Global leads the implementation of PMVS, a five-year initiative under PMI to control malaria. The other implementing partners include PATH, PSI, and EnCompass. The leaked document did not provide the estimated cost and obligated amount for the Integrated Health Systems IDIQ, but based on USASpending, the total cost is currently pegged at $251.8 million, of which $240.2 million has already been obligated, which suggests that around $11.6 million might still get obligated. 4. Catholic Relief Services Total number of active awards: 21 Total estimated cost of active awards: $1.3 billion Percentage of obligated active: 59.4% Total active unobligated amount: $528.1 million Total potential revenue before termination: $687 million Percentage of potential revenue left: 76.9% About 76.9% of the potential revenue of CRS — amounting to $528.1 million in unobligated funding — survived the termination. The data shows that 15 of the 21 active awards have already been fully obligated. Among those with funds still left to be obligated, the largest is for food assistance in Ethiopia. The award’s total estimated cost is $361.9 million, with $245.3 million still left to be obligated. 5. UNOPS Total number of active awards: Two Total estimated cost of active awards: $455.3 million Percentage of obligated active: 24.2% Total active unobligated amount: $345.2 million Total potential revenue before termination: $434.9 million Percentage of potential revenue left: 79.4% Only one of UNOPS’ two active awards has remaining funds to be obligated: $345.2 million in unobligated amount for the New Stop TB Partnership, which has a total estimated cost of $455 million. The other award, worth $275,000, is for custom clearance of humanitarian goods to the Gaza Strip. 6. Mission for Essential Drugs and Supplies Total number of active awards: One Total estimated cost of active awards: $217.9 million Percentage of obligated active: 13.4% Total active unobligated amount: $188.7 million Total potential revenue before termination: $188,696,256 Percentage of potential revenue left: 100% MEDS is a Kenyan faith-based nonprofit organization working to support the health supply chain in Kenya and sub-Saharan Africa. It was awarded the Supply Chain Strengthening activity in 2021, with an estimated total cost of $217.9 million for a five-year period. Only 13.4% of the total cost has been obligated, leaving $188.7 million in unobligated funding. MEDS is among the organizations that didn’t see any award terminations. 7. Pact Total number of active awards: Three Total estimated cost of active awards: $399.4 million Percentage of obligated active: 61.3% Total active unobligated amount: $154.5 million Total potential revenue before termination: $326.6 million Percentage of potential revenue left: 47.3% USAID retained three HIV-related awards to Pact, with their cumulative total estimated costs totaling $399.4 million. Among these active awards, the biggest one aims to reduce the incidence of HIV/AIDS among at-risk pregnant and breastfeeding women, infants, children, and youth in PEPFAR-supported countries. Its total estimated cost is $250 million, with $86.3 million left to be obligated. 8. Maternal, Adolescent and Child Health Institute Total number of active awards: Two Total estimated cost of active awards: $179 million Percentage of obligated active: 15% Total active unobligated amount: $152.2 million Total potential revenue before termination: $152.2 million Percentage of potential revenue left: 100% Based in South Africa, MatCH is a health nonprofit that provides capacity building, direct service delivery, and technical assistance related to HIV and tuberculosis. Its two active awards support HIV and TB control in the KwaZulu-Natal Province and the Eastern Cape Province. Their total estimated cost is $179 million, with $152.2 million in unobligated funding. MatCH didn’t have any award cancellations from USAID. 9. World Vision Total number of active awards: 14 Total estimated cost of active awards: $538 million Percentage of obligated active: 74% Total active unobligated amount: $139.6 million Total potential revenue before termination: $162.4 million Percentage of potential revenue left: 86% Of the 15 active awards of World Vision, only five have remaining funding to be obligated. The biggest unobligated amount is worth $63.9 million for a multicountry polio eradication project, followed by a $55.4 million unobligated amount for food security activity in Somalia. World Vision retained 86% of its total potential revenue. 10. U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Total number of active awards: One Total estimated cost of active awards: $250 million Percentage of obligated active: 46.6% Total active unobligated amount: $133.4 million Total potential revenue before termination: $133.4 million Percentage of potential revenue left: 100% CDC, the national public health agency of the U.S., is also among those that retained all its funding. The document did not provide any information on the project, but foreignassistance.gov data shows that CDC received funding from the Department of State through USAID for several health initiatives across the world. 11. Save the Children USA Total number of active awards: 25 Total estimated cost of active awards: $543.6 million Percentage of obligated active: 75.7% Total active unobligated amount: $131.9 million Total potential revenue before termination: $216.4 million Percentage of potential revenue left: 61% Of Save the Children’s 25 active awards, only seven still have unobligated funding. The largest is the New Resilience and Food Security Activity in Somalia. The award has a total estimated cost of $72 million, and only 17% has been obligated, meaning that $59.7 million could still be obligated. 12. International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Total number of active awards: Six Total estimated cost of active awards: $173.7 million Percentage of obligated active: 26.6% Total active unobligated amount: $127.5 million Total potential revenue before termination: $136.3 million Percentage of potential revenue left: 93.6% IFRC mostly retained its total potential revenue. All but one of its six active awards have unobligated funding, worth $127.5 million. The document didn’t specify the award description, but foreignassistance.gov data shows that the funding is for IFRC’s health projects, including emerging health threats, malaria, and HIV. 13. UNICEF Total number of active awards: 41 Total estimated cost of active awards: $938.6 million Percentage of obligated active: 88.4% Total active unobligated amount: $108.5 million Total potential revenue before termination: $174.3 million Percentage of potential revenue left: 62.2% UNICEF retained the most number of awards among the organizations on the list, although only two of these active awards have remaining unobligated funding: $57.9 million for the maternal and newborn health umbrella grant and $50 million for the U.N. agency’s polio and immunization program. 14. DAI Global Total number of active awards: Three Total estimated cost of active awards: $281.4 million Percentage of obligated active: 62.4% Total active unobligated amount: $105.8 million Total potential revenue before termination: $1.4 billion Percentage of potential revenue left: 7.7% DAI is among the hardest hit contractors, with $1.3 billion in awards canceled, leaving just 7.7% of its potential total revenue before the terminations. Despite this, it still ranked among the contractors with the largest sum of unobligated active awards. Its biggest active award is for a water sanitation and conservation activity in Lebanon. The award’s total estimated cost is $115.9 million, of which $73.2 million is still to be obligated. 15. RMI Global Solutions Total number of active awards: One Total estimated cost of active awards: $560.8 million Percentage of obligated active: 81.8% Total active unobligated amount: $101.8 million Total potential revenue before termination: $101.8 million Percentage of potential revenue left: 100% Initially founded as a medical training company, RMI provides solutions in the health sector. Its active award is for the procurement and delivery of HIV rapid test kits, which have an estimated total cost of $560.8 million. Of this, $101.8 million is still unobligated. The activity is funded under the Global Health Supply Chain HIV Rapid Test Kit, or GHSC-RTK, program. RMI is also among USAID’s implementers that didn’t experience any award terminations.