The Trump administration’s dismantling of USAID has crippled the agency’s ability to monitor $8.2 billion in unspent aid, leaving it vulnerable to misuse and funding of terrorist organizations, warns a government watchdog.
As per report by the USAID Office of the Inspector-General, the State Department’s waivers to exempt “life-saving humanitarian assistance” from President Donald Trump’s freeze on U.S. foreign aid were hindered by widespread staff reductions and uncertainty over what kind of aid is and is not permissible.
Trump placed a freeze on most U.S. foreign aid on January 20 in an effort to make sure it was in line with his “America First” agenda, which led to the suspension of hundreds of USAID programs that provided billions of dollars in aid worldwide.
With over 10,000 employees both domestically and abroad, his administration has taken steps to destroy USAID and potentially combine it with the State Department. For over a week, the agency’s website has been down. However, the OIG’s report, which is still available online, was released on Monday by the agency’s independent oversight division.
OIG’s report focused on the dangers associated with the agency’s $8.2 billion in “obligated but undisbursed humanitarian assistance funds” since the USAID bureau of humanitarian affairs (BHA) was essentially crippled by the administration’s aid freeze and subsequent staff reduction.
“Recent widespread staffing reductions across the Agency, particularly within BHA, coupled with uncertainty about the scope of foreign assistance waivers and permissible communications with implementers, has degraded USAID’s ability to distribute and safeguard taxpayer-funded humanitarian assistance,” the report said.
In particular, USAID’s current supervision procedures, despite some previously noted flaws, are now mainly nonoperational in light of these recent personnel actions and orders,” it continued.
According to the report, USAID projects in some nations need third-party monitoring and partner vetting to make sure that money reaches the right people and doesn’t end up in the hands of “terrorists and their supporters.” However, personnel cuts severely damaged supervision systems.
An administration official told Reuters that the notification was delivered to staff last week, putting the majority of USAID’s employees on administrative leave, with the exception of some 600 individuals.
Aid workers and UN staff stated that most of the programs remained closed, despite U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio issuing waivers for what he called “life-saving humanitarian assistance” to be exempt from the suspension.
The study stated that USAID’s ability to provide humanitarian aid was hindered by a lack of clarity about the scope of the humanitarian assistance waivers and the extent of permissible communications between BHA staff and its implementers.
