Staff have been placed on leave with the exception of "mission-critical functions, core leadership, and specially designated programs."
The massive reduction comes after USAID announced that it would recall all foreign-based employees and place most staff on administrative leave with the exception of "mission-critical functions, core leadership, and specially designated programs."
USAID, which has been slammed by Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) for wasteful spending, will only keep 294 of the 10,000 staffers. This includes 12 in Africa and eight in Asia, according to Reuters. The staff that remains is specialized in humanitarian efforts. Around 800 contracts with the agency have been terminated and Trump has even called for the agency to be shut down.
The Trump administration plans to merge the smaller USAID with the State Department and as part of the shift, Secretary of State Marco Rubio was appointed acting director of USAID.
USAID, created in 1961 by President John F. Kennedy, has been the US government’s main agency for foreign aid and humanitarian assistance. In fiscal year 2023, it had a budget of $43.4 billion, with $16.8 billion allocated for foreign governance, $10.5 billion for humanitarian aid, $7 billion for health care initiatives, and other projects.
On the first day of his second term, President Trump ordered a 90-day pause on US foreign development assistance and said that USAID was being “run by a bunch of radical lunatics.”
Meanwhile, Trump has taken more action at other agencies to cut down on the cost of government. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has confirmed that it put 168 employees on leave to comply with Trump’s executive order to end DEI. The Trump administration has also offered widespread buyouts to federal employees in order for them to resign and take payment until September.
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