Trump Leaves USAID Staff In Despair

Beyond putting its work in some of the world’s poorest countries in doubt, US President Donald Trump’s sudden move to shut down USAID has left many of its thousands of employees in shock and despair.

Promising to slash federal spending, Trump’s government has put almost all of the more than 10,000 employees at the US Agency for International Development (USAID) on leave and promised to shut down the organization.

One employee, speaking on condition of anonymity, sobbed in a conference call involving current and former USAID staff with journalists.

“We’re not being treated like humans right now,” she said.

“I am just bewildered that the approach has been like this,” she said. “I’m so concerned about the direction of this country.”

Another worker spoke of their commitment to the cause of USAID, which operates a wide array of humanitarian and development programs around the world and is one of the primary tools of US soft power.

“We literally have focused our life on this USAID mission,” she said, adding that her family had been working in the sector “for decades now.”

“You don’t have a home to go to. And you have a mission that you believe in and that you’ve supported for decades, and it’s just the rug’s pulled (from) under you,” she said.

There is “a great deal of heartache and anger,” said one former USAID employee.

Trump and his allies allege the agency is rife with “fraud,” but have provided little proof of the accusations.

USAID’s budget of more than $40 billion is mandated by Congress, with its programs ranging from governance to life-saving food assistance.

The agency has, over the years, faced criticism in the aid sector for its overhead costs and questions on whether some of its programs achieve their objectives.

The former USAID employee spoke of how their colleagues “dedicated their lives to serving others on behalf of the American people.”