President Donald Trump’s administration has terminated thousands of foreign assistance grants and awards provided through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) as part of a broader effort to reduce the size of the federal government.
As part of a review of foreign aid spending, the U.S. State Department is discontinuing at least 10,000 grants and contracts from the USAID and the State Department.
This includes programs previously classified as “life-saving activities,” which were given waivers from the foreign aid suspension.
The termination of these grants will disrupt critical services such as healthcare, nutrition, and emergency relief, leaving some of the world’s most vulnerable populations without vital support and thousands jobless.
Trump Govt Terminates Grants and Contracts
A wave of emails from the State Department in Washington has reached inboxes around the world, affecting refugee camps, tuberculosis clinics, polio vaccination projects, and thousands of other organizations that depend on U.S. funding for life-saving work.
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These brief communications marked the end of funding for approximately 5,800 projects financed by USAID.
“Please see the attached notice regarding your indicated USAID award. Your award is being terminated for convenience and the interests of the U.S. Government pursuant to a directive from U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, in his capacity as the Acting Administrator for the U.S. Agency for International Development (“the Agency” or “USAID”) and/or Peter W. Marocco, who is performing the duties and functions of both Deputy Administrators for USAID,” one of the email read.
“Secretary Rubio and PTDO Deputy Administrator Marocco have determined your award is not aligned with Agency priorities and made a determination that continuing this program is not in the national interest.”
USAID said the decision to terminate the awards is a policy determination vested in the Acting Administrator and the person performing the duties and functions of the Deputy Administrator.
The latest cancellations come as U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration nears completion of a review to ensure that grants are aligned with his “America First” agenda after ordering a 90-day pause on all foreign aid in January to assess whether projects were consistent with his policy aims.
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US Cuts of USAID Contracts Halt Global Humanitarian Efforts
The order, along with the ensuing stop-work orders, threw USAID into turmoil, halting the agency’s operations worldwide.
This disruption jeopardized the delivery of life-saving food and medical aid, throwing global humanitarian relief efforts into chaos.
Thousands of staff were placed on leave, and contractors were terminated, with workers barred from entering the agency’s headquarters in downtown Washington.
The majority of those placed on leave are not expected to be reinstated.
USAID workers were briefly allowed to reenter the headquarters in Washington on Thursday, February 27, to collect their personal belongings and clear out their desks, following the Trump administration’s announcement that it was cutting more than 90% of the agency’s aid contracts.
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