U.S. President Donald Trump plans to eliminate the majority of the positions at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the New York Times (NYT) reported on Feb. 6, citing three people with knowledge of the plans.
The cuts will reduce the agency from 10,000 staff worldwide to just 290, sources said.
The announcement comes after the Trump administration issued a directive on Feb. 4 saying that all USAID employees will be placed on administrative leave starting Feb. 7.
The administration informed USAID officials on Feb. 6 that it was canceling around 800 awards and contracts administered via the agency, the NYT sources said. The three people were granted anonymity as they are not authorized to publicly discuss the cuts.
The 290 remaining employees include those specializing in health and humanitarian assistance, the sources said.
Trump's attacks on USAID began from his first day in office. A Jan. 20 executive order imposed a 90-day freeze on all U.S. foreign assistance, including vital humanitarian aid projects in Ukraine.
The agency has since been subsumed by the U.S. State Department, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio taking over as acting administrative director. Lawmakers from the Democratic party protested the move, calling it "illegal."
Rubio assured reporters on Feb. 4 that the U.S. was "not going to eliminate foreign aid." Meanwhile, billionaire Elon Musk, who heads the Department of Government Effectiveness (DOGE), has blasted USAID as a "criminal organization" and pushed for its dissolution.
Since the launch of Russia's full-scale invasion, USAID has provided $2.6 billion in humanitarian aid, $5 billion in development assistance, and over $30 billion in direct budget support to Ukraine.
The funding has supported rebuilding schools, financing bomb shelters, and equipping hospitals with advanced medical equipment.
Tim Zadorozhnyy
