The Trump administration is pulling almost all workers off the job at the U.S. Agency for International Development. A sweeping freeze on foreign assistance is set to take effect on Friday. The move is creating uncertainty across the globe for people and projects that rely on the U.S. for funding.

New York

The Trump administration is initiating a wide-ranging freeze on foreign assistance, significantly impacting the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). The freeze creates a climate of uncertainty affecting numerous global aid projects reliant on U.S. funding. USAID, a key player in international humanitarian efforts for decades, has been a major funder of emergency response initiatives in conflict zones like Sudan, providing critical support for civil society and humanitarian aid.

Sudan's humanitarian crisis is exacerbated by the potential reduction in funding, even though the Trump administration has allowed an exception for food assistance. However, the specifics of implementing this exemption remain unclear. USAID's efforts are instrumental in sustaining hope for peace and democracy by supporting local employment and civil society initiatives, including organizations such as Giza, a non-profit based in Nairobi.

Giza collaborates with USAID to provide employment to local journalists and support their families, contributing to international media narratives on Sudan's conflict. Despite the Trump administration's push to place USAID under the State Department, the debate continues on the role of foreign aid in advancing U.S. national interests versus its humanitarian and global alliance-building goals.



USAID funding freeze adds uncertainty for global aid projects

A safe haven in the midst of conflict. So-called emergency response rooms like this one in Sudan provide both food and information for those fleeing violence. There are hundreds of them in the country, organized and supported by local groups and individuals, but at least half of the funding comes from USAID and is funneled through non-profits like one based in Nairobi called Giza, run by Trevor Snapp. Providing humanitarian aid in a context like Sudan is critical, it keeps people alive. At the same time, it's really critical to support civil society. They need to have jobs they can both provide for their family, but also keep the hope alive for peace and democracy. And that's something that USAID and the U.S. has been very effective at doing. For Sudan, the world's largest humanitarian crisis, the situation is particularly grave. Following freezing foreign aid, the Trump administration has allowed an exemption for food assistance, but how it will be implemented remains unclear. The United States is the world's largest provider of humanitarian aid, and for decades that's included efforts to bolster civil society abroad as a way of building global alliances. But now the Trump administration is taking aim at foreign assistance, accusing it of wastefulness and serving special interests. The plan is to absorb USAID under the State Department, headed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio. I have long supported foreign aid, I continue to support foreign aid, but foreign aid is not charity, it exists for the purpose of advancing the national interest of the United States. Giza, with the help of USAID, also provides employment for dozens of local journalists and a lifeline for their families. They ask that we not show their faces for fear of retribution, but their work has been featured internationally in media like the New York Times and Al Jazeera. One of their documentaries is currently being premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. International communities look at Sudan as a numbers, how many people hunger, how many people dying, but we're trying to cover the feelings, to humanize things, how people feel with the war. In a nation embroiled in conflict, he fears fewer opportunities to make money will mean more reasons for people to wage war. Kristen Salumi, Al Jazeera, New York.

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