International aid groups are dealing with the pain of slashed USAID funding by cutting staff, localizing and coordinating better |
Since Jan. 20, 2025, the first day of his second term in office, President Donald Trump has slashed U.S. foreign aid spending. It began with a stop-work order that paused spending on everything from treating tropical diseases in Mali to providing nutrition support in Nepal.
By early February 2025, billionaire Elon Musk announced that the U.S. Agency for International Development, the lead foreign aid agency, had been fed “into the wood chipper.” By July 1, USAID had ceased to exist, 83% of its programs had been canceled, and remaining aid programs were moved into the State Department – where it was unclear how they would be managed. Congress clawed back billions in previously approved aid spending, at Trump’s request, in July.
These developments rattled nongovernmental organizations around the world because about half of USAID’s funding was channeled through nongovernmental organizations prior to this upheaval. According to Tom Hart, who heads a coalition of U.S.-based NGOs, “We’re in a pivot moment, a massive transition, and things aren’t clear.”
According to the official foreignassistance.gov website, the U.S. spent US$32 billion on foreign aid in 2025, less than half of the $68 billion it spent in 2024. These figures include all of USAID’s budget.
The Trump administration is seeking to continue these cuts in its proposed budget for 2026. For example, its proposed $3.8 billion global health budget would mark a 60% decrease from actual 2025 spending.
But the budget the House of Representatives passed in January 2026