On February 3, 2025, the offices of USAID were shut down by the Trump administration. USAID (United States Agency for International Development) is an independent agency of the government that supplies foreign aid, and helps developing countries develop. Even though the offices of USAID opened up again later, the number of employees was reduced from 10,000 to just under 400 employees. Some critics of this shutdown say that this is an overreach of the federal government, while supporters say that it is cracking down on wasteful spending. Find out both sides of the argument, and make an opinion for or against the shutdown.
What is USAID?
USAID is an independent agency of the government that is responsible for supplying foreign aid, and aiding developing countries. On average, USAID gives about $23 billion dollars a year to over 100 different countries, that helps countries with things like economic development and growth in low income countries, and improving the health and wellbeing of a country’s citizens. Before the shutdown, over 10,000 people were employed by USAID.
Why the Shutdown was Good
USAID is an expensive agency to run, as it costs more than $40 billion dollars a year to pay its employees – of which there used to be about 10,000 – and to supply foreign aid. The money will come from taxpayers, which will cost them money. Sometimes, supplying USAID to other countries can have implications on inequality for certain groups of people. If one group of people receives more aid than the other, they may become elevated in society, and have greater opportunities for success than the group that received less aid. Additionally, sometimes USAID has been used to exert political influence in some countries, which may have been used to change the government to a more democratic type of government, which is good, but may also lead to uprising and unrest.
Why the Shutdown was Bad
USAID had employed over 10,000 employees before the shutdown, which was reduced to just about 390 after the shutdown. The employees who were terminated lost their jobs, which will make it difficult for these workers to buy basic necessities like rent, food, and utilities while they are out of work. Many of these workers were terminated only a day after they had received their termination notice, which will give them more time without a job. Even though Elon Musk, who was the leader of DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency) said he would pay these workers on administrative leave, there is concern that he won’t do this, as he has flip flopped his positions on many cases like these. USAID, while spending $40 billion dollars a year, only makes up less than 1% of government spending, which is not a substantial amount. The White House has repeatedly made false claims about the aid that USAID provides, like saying that “there was going to be $50 million taxpayer dollars that went out the door to fund condoms in Gaza,” which was deemed false. Many people felt that the shutdown was an overreach of the Executive Branch (the branch that enforces the laws) as Congress had already allocated money to go to USAID. Many judges blocked the shutdown, saying that it was against the Constitution, but the Trump administration had mainly ignored these warnings. Then, many people abroad will suffer due to the closure of USAID, as they will find it more difficult to receive assistance from other countries. In places like Africa, where the US was giving assistance to stop the spread of Ebola, a deadly virus, will not receive any more funding, and many children, who do not have enough to eat, will not receive any more assistance.
