Trump calls his own foreign aid cuts at USAid ‘devastating’
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US President Donald Trump (right) meeting South African President Cyril Ramaphosa at the White House on May 21.
PHOTO: AFP
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WASHINGTON - US President Donald Trump said on May 21 that his administration’s cuts
Speaking beside South African President Cyril Ramaphosa during a White House visit, Mr Trump was asked about his cutting most foreign aid by a reporter, who said the decision had significant impacts in Africa.
“It’s devastating, and hopefully a lot of people are going to start spending a lot of money,” Mr Trump said in the Oval Office.
“I’ve talked to other nations. We want them to chip in and spend money too, and we’ve spent a lot. And it’s a big – it’s a tremendous problem going on in many countries. A lot of problems going on. The United States always gets the request for money. Nobody else helps.”
The State Department, which manages USAid, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The administration has repeatedly defended the cuts, saying they were focused on wasted funds. The gutting of the agency, largely overseen by South Africa-born businessman Elon Musk, is the subject of several federal lawsuits.
The US is the world’s largest humanitarian aid donor, amounting to at least 38 per cent of all contributions recorded by the United Nations. It disbursed US$61 billion (S$78 billion) in foreign assistance in 2024, just over half of it via USAid, according to government data.
The US spent half a billion dollars on South African aid in 2023, mostly on healthcare, the most recent data shows. Most of that funding has been withdrawn, though it is unclear exactly how much.
The cuts have had an effect on the country’s response to the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) epidemic. South Africa has the world’s highest burden of HIV, with about eight million people – one in five adults – living with the virus.
Washington was funding 17 per cent of the country’s HIV budget before the cuts. In the months since, testing and monitoring of HIV patients across South Africa has decreased, Reuters has reported. REUTERS
