Oxfam America CEO on Devastating Impact of US Foreign Aid Cuts

Devastating Impact of Foreign Aid Cuts

• 💔 The cuts to foreign aid, particularly the cancellation of USAID contracts and the $8 billion recisions package, are described as enormous, harmful, cruel, hurtful, inhumane, and immoral.
• ⚠️ In the Democratic Republic of Congo, armed conflict and the fall of Goma created a double shock, exacerbated by US government closure and cuts to foreign assistance precisely when communities needed it most.
• 😥 The impact is devastating, with claims that these cuts are directly causing harm and death.

On-the-Ground Realities in DRC

• 🏘️ The closure and destruction of over 20 displacement sites in Goma left 700,000 people without safe shelter, clean water, and basic sanitation.
• 💧 Oxfam and its partners had to scale back support for water, sanitation, and hygiene services, leaving families without access to basic necessities like food, clean water, and medicine.
• 📉 The withdrawal of funding by some organizations stretches the remaining aid further, forcing humanitarian workers to make impossible choices.

Public Health Crisis and Loss of Trust

• 🦠 A cholera outbreak is occurring due to people drinking from contaminated water sources, a direct consequence of reduced water and sanitation support.
• 📉 Local partners have lost up to 60% of their funding overnight, leading to the closure of 89 local organizations and reduced support from 30 international agencies.
• 💔 The cuts have eroded trust, with local partners and communities feeling a profound sense of betrayal when funding already approved is clawed back.

Increased Violence and Health Risks

• ⚠️ The incidence of sexual violence and rape is increasing as people become desperate.
• 💊 Over 8,200 people living with HIV lost access to anti-retroviral treatment, and emergency post-rape care kits are disappearing.
• 😔 Young women and mothers are facing unimaginable choices, with underage daughters being impregnated by rape and having nowhere to turn.

Long-Term Consequences and Public Opinion

• 📉 The long-term impacts include widespread suffering, public health crises for girls and women, and families struggling to cope, with one study suggesting over 14 million people could die in the next 5 years due to these cuts.
• 🇺🇸 A poll indicates that two-thirds of Americans support humanitarian assistance, with 95% believing that foreign aid should constitute a substantially higher percentage of the US budget than the current 1%.
• 💰 The recisions package, which clawed back $8 billion for foreign aid to facilitate tax cuts for the wealthy, is seen as a