USAid watchdog fired after critical report on bid to dismantle the agency
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In fiscal year 2023, United States disbursed US$72 billion (S$97.4 billion) of aid worldwide.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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WASHINGTON - The inspector-general for the US Agency for International Development was fired on Feb 11, a USAid official said, a day after his office published a report critical of the Trump administration’s effort to eliminate the agency
Mr Paul Martin had served as the agency’s inspector-general, a position requiring US Senate confirmation, since December 2023.
The USAid official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive matters, said Mr Martin was “removed from his position”.
Mr Martin was informed by an e-mail from Mr Trent Morse, deputy director of the Office of Presidential Personnel. Mr Morse told Mr Martin that his position as USAid inspector-general was terminated “effective immediately”, a copy of the e-mail showed.
No reason was provided. The White House did not have any comment.
The inspector-general’s office on Feb 10 released a report that said the Trump administration’s move to dismantle USAid
The report said staff cuts and stop-work orders have made it difficult to ensure taxpayer-funded aid would end up in the hands of those intended.
Hundreds of USAid programmes across the globe representing billions of dollars of US assistance came to a halt after US President Donald Trump on Jan 20 ordered a freeze on most US foreign aid, saying he wanted to ensure it was aligned with his “America First” policy.
Mr Trump on Feb 11 called USAid “incompetent and corrupt”, as he tasked billionaire Elon Musk with scaling down the agency, which had more than 10,000 staff at home and overseas before all but just over 600 were put on leave or fired.
The Trump administration last week took steps to put most of USAid’s workforce on administrative leave, but the move was blocked by a judge on Feb 7.
In fiscal year 2023, the United States disbursed US$72 billion of aid worldwide on initiatives including women’s health in conflict zones, clean water access, HIV/Aids treatments, energy security and anti-corruption work. It provided 42 per cent of all humanitarian aid tracked by the United Nations in 2024.
The funding, less than 1 per cent of the US federal budget, has historically been justified as instrumental to Washington’s efforts to build alliances around the world, reinforce diplomacy and counter the influence of adversaries such as China and Russia in the developing world. REUTERS
