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No nation can fill the foreign aid void left by USAID

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Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
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Months since the order was given, the gap left in foreign aid spending by the US is so vast that no other nation has been able to fill it, especially when most are redirecting funding to the defense industry.

4 months ago, the Trump administration moved to cut USAID spending. Spearheaded by what was once Elon Musk’s DOGE, the government was driven to reduce its overall expenditures and eliminate what the administration viewed as ‘wasteful’ foreign programs.

Now, the loss of funding is starting to hit many nations globally, leaving their citizens stranded and helpless. Thus, the question arises: Is it possible to fill the global foreign aid gap left by the US?

Since John F. Kennedy’s administration, USAID has expanded to become the world’s largest foreign aid provider, accounting for 40% of all aid. Last year, the rest of the world accounted for $149 billion of foreign aid, while the US alone spent $63 billion. That’s roughly 30% of 2025’s cumulative global foreign aid.

Despite this dependence, the Trump administration announced its intention to terminate 83% of programs and $54 billion in multi-year contracts upon its assumption of power.

After the cut was announced, The Lancet published a major study evaluating the impact of the USAID before and after the cuts. Between 2001 and 2021, the agency managed to prevent 91.8 million deaths worldwide across 133 low- and middle-income countries.

The study estimated that the cuts could lead to over 14 million additional deaths worldwide by 2030, including 4.5 million children under five. Key causes of these deaths are HIV/AIDS, malaria, and neglected tropical diseases, including a reversal of the 40% decline in maternal mortality achieved in the last 23 years.

The deaths stem from diminished access to vital health services, with clinics closed, health workers being dismissed, and supplies dwindling. Preventive programs for immunization, family planning, and disease control were halted. Those in need are left without basic healthcare support, increasing their vulnerability.

Undeterred and progressing with the drastic cuts, the cold-blooded nature of the Trump administration is on full display. Their America First policy has led the US to reverse its stance on the geopolitical stage, prompting the world to question the future of foreign aid in the absence of the nation.

Naturally, the world is now looking to some of the largest economies to fill the 40% funding gap that remains.

Just recently, Australia announced an A$1.28 billion package to ASEAN to offset the impact of the USAID cuts in the region. An additional A$10 million was also announced to fund Myanmar’s disaster response and support displaced women and girls.

Countries like South Korea aim to channel $4.9 billion into their Official Development Assistance (ODA), which is an indicator of financial aid provided to developing countries. On the other hand, Italy, with a focus on development in Africa, has approved a budget until 2027 amounting to $7 billion.

Circling back to the question posed earlier, however, the answer is no; the world will not be able to fill the gap left by the US.

Currently, nations are preoccupied with geopolitical tensions from around the globe – be it Russia, the Middle East, or dare one say, the US itself. As such, the Western superpower was not the only one to pull foreign aid funding. Though not as drastic, other nations have followed suit, redirecting their energy into defense budgets.

The UK reduced aid spending from 0.5% to 0.3% of its gross national income, which is an estimated £6 billion. This is a 39% reduction compared to 2023 levels of aid spending, making it a significant budget reduction among major donors. France plans on cutting its spending by 35% to 37% and is still reviewing its existing programs. Additionally, Germany and Canada aim to do the same with a respective cut of 27% and 25%.

In fact, the OECD projects a drop capped 17% in this year’s global ODA, with a common fund redirection to the defense sector. This significant global decrease in foreign aid has only threatened health, education, food security, and humanitarian programs in developing countries.

What’s worse is that most of the heavily impacted countries lie within Africa, with their nations potentially losing up to one-quarter of their aid by the end of the year. The lack of assistance has only made humanitarian crises worse in developing nations, thrusting them further into the precarious situations from which USAID once protected them.

Now, vulnerable populations will suffer a worse fate than before, while the funds they require so desperately are excessively funneled into war.

Remote Writer Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Hey, I’m Anyaa, a Behavioral Economist in the making who is currently doing a degree in Psychology. By nature, I’m a journalist who hopes to instigate conversations by sharing the stories and truths that make the world more comprehensible.

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