The Trump administration has finally released their plan on how they’re restructuring USAID.
The new scheme comes only weeks after President Donald Trump teamed up with Tesla billionaire Elon Musk to slash government agencies through the Department of Energy Efficient (DOGE), forcing thousands of USAID employees from their jobs. Around 90% of USAID’s foreign aid contracts were eliminated.
Now, according to Politico, Trump wants to make USAID smaller and limit its focus, ensuring that it only takes on issues like global health, food security, disaster response, and anything that helps the administration take on China. Under the proposal, the organization’s new name will be the U.S. Agency for International Humanitarian Assistance.
All “politically oriented” programs that Trump wants to continue, like promoting democracy or empowering women, will be moved under the State Department.
The president plans to counter China by combining the Millennium Challenge Corporation, an agency focused on reducing global poverty, with the U.S. Trade and Development Agency under the backing of the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation. The entity would primarily promote private sector investment, especially for energy, technology, and infrastructure.
Although it is not yet clear whether the proposal has been finalized and if Secretary of State Marco Rubio or other senior Trump administration officials have given it the green light, it is evident that the new approach closely aligns with Trump’s goals for the U.S. The plan also notes some instances where congressional approval may be required, according to the report.
The State Department did not respond to a request for comment from Politico. The Daily Beast has also reached out to the State Department for comment.
The proposal adds that existing development programming is “inefficient and fragmented” and mistakenly placed in “every sector in every country” which the administration claims does not yield the best results.
The plan says that Trump’s approach would better “foster peace and stability in regions critical to U.S. interests, catalyze economic opportunities that support American businesses and consumers, and mitigate global threats such as pandemic diseases.” It also argues that all aid programs should have set end dates and their success carefully measured along the way.
After gutting the 60-year-old agency, Trump hopes to rebuild it in his image. On his first day back in the Oval Office, he signed an executive order withdrawing the US from the World Health Organization (WHO). He has also reportedly demanded all staff members from the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) cut off all communication with the WHO.
A state department spokesperson said that the department is committed to implementing Trump and Rubio’s foreign policy objectives by being as innovative, nimble, and as focused as possible. The spokesperson stressed that any changes to the structure of USAID will be done in consultation with Congress and will be subject to Congressional notification.
Trump’s “America First” policies left countless families worldwide stranded with nowhere to turn. Trump took a wrecking ball to foreign aid in the first few months of his administration, putting millions of lives at risk. Health clinics worldwide shuttered and essential medication was withheld from struggling patients.
