USAID: Trump admn cuts 83% of programmes globally
Virendra Pandit
New Delhi: The United States on Monday announced that it would shut down 83 percent of programs worldwide, funded by the US Agency for International Development (USAID), a stronghold of the Democratic Party.
The media reported, quoting officials, that these programs did not meet Washington’s interests.
Announcing on Monday, Secretary of State Department Marco Rubio said that the “5200 contracts that are now canceled spent tens of billions of dollars in ways that did not serve, (and in some cases even harmed), the core national interests of the United States.”
“In consultation with the US Congress, we intend for the remaining 18 percent of programs we are keeping (approximately 1,000) to now be administered more effectively under the State Department,” he added.
“After a 6-week review, we are officially canceling 83 percent of the programs at USAID.”
The 5200 cancelled contracts spent tens of billions of dollars in ways that did not serve, (and in some cases even harmed), the core national interests of the United States, he said.
“Thank you to DOGE and our hardworking staff who worked very long hours to achieve this overdue and historic reform.”
In February this year, President Donald Trump’s administration announced that it was cutting off more than 90 percent of foreign aid provided through USAID. According to media reports, a total of about 5,800 grants were canceled, and more than 500 USAID grants were frozen.
Earlier this month, the US Supreme Court rejected the authorities’ request to suspend the payment of about USD 2 billion to foreign organizations through USAID for already completed projects.
