President Donald Trump’s decision to freeze foreign aid has caused widespread panic among aid workers in Africa, with some programs, including experimental HIV treatment trials, abruptly halted. Last week, Trump ordered the suspension of foreign assistance, while his billionaire ally, Elon Musk, bragged about putting USAID “through the woodchipper.”
The suspension includes a 90-day halt to the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), which supports over 20 million people living with HIV and employs 270,000 healthcare workers, according to an analysis by the Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR).
PEPFAR provides essential services, including anti-retroviral treatments to 679,936 pregnant women living with HIV, both for their own health and to prevent transmission to their babies. amfAR estimates that a 90-day stoppage could result in 135,987 babies acquiring HIV.
Despite U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is temporarily heading USAID, stating that life-saving treatments would be exempt from the freeze, frontline workers in Africa report that many programs have already been suspended.
“As of now, nothing is happening,” said Aghan Daniel, head of a USAID-funded Kenyan team of health journalists. He explained to AFP that several research projects, including clinical trials for HIV treatments, had come to a sudden halt, leaving patients without critical care. “The people who were part of the study are going to face health consequences because the trials stopped abruptly,” Daniel added. His own team of six journalists lost their jobs due to the freeze. “A lot of people will die because they no longer have access to the information they need,” Daniel warned. “One key approach to reducing HIV rates in Africa is through education, including raising awareness about sexual health and treatments like lenacapavir and HIV prevention drugs.”
USAID, founded in 1961, has an annual budget of over $40 billion, funding global development, health, and humanitarian programs. The freeze has not only affected HIV services but also other critical programs. A staff member working for a USAID-funded program in Kenya described Trump’s decision as “devastating” and said it had triggered widespread panic. “More people will die from diseases like tuberculosis and cholera,” the source said. Many charity organizations are struggling financially, unable to pay rent or salaries, and have placed employees on unpaid leave.
In Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, AFP observed staff clearing their desks at a USAID office. Despite Rubio’s assurances, confusion remains about what qualifies as “life-saving work.” A staff member at an NGO focused on food security in conflict areas questioned, “Are vaccines life-saving, or are nutrition programs for the severely malnourished more urgent?”
“Suspending programs, even for a short time, could be the difference between life and death for some people,” said the anonymous worker.
Daniel also emphasized that the negative impact could have been reduced with prior notice. “There are too many emergencies in the world already – we didn’t need another one,” he said.
