Overseas aid cuts threaten progress for vulnerable communities

DHAKA, BANGLADESH – U.S. foreign assistance programme terminations, and announced overseas aid cuts in Switzerland, The Netherlands and more recently, the U.K. are exacerbating the challenges BRAC and other organisations in the Global South confront. Millions of people in Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Indonesia, Liberia, and the Philippines are impacted by cuts to BRAC projects delivering lifesaving health care, responding to natural disasters, expanding access to education, supporting local Civil Society Organisations, lifting people out of poverty and more.

The U.S. Government terminated 12 of the 13 BRAC projects receiving U.S. foreign assistance. BRAC has received one lift of suspension to continue a critical programme alongside Rohingya refugees living in the world’s largest refugee camp in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, as well as members of the nearby host community.

These decisions came days before the United Nations World Food Programme announced on March 4th, that Rohingya refugees will see their food rations nearly halved to just $6.50 per month, down from $12 (that’s 6 Euros, or £5). BRAC is the largest civil society responder to the crisis in Cox’s Bazar, where almost 1 million Rohingya fleeing persecution in Myanmar have sheltered since 2017. Already acute needs—amid contexts of climate change and limited opportunities—will be further exacerbated.

“The recent cuts to U.S. Government funding have had a devastating impact on Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh, who are already among the most vulnerable communities in the world,” says Asif Saleh, Executive Director of BRAC. “With food rations now being halved, families relying on monthly staples like rice, lentil, and cooking oil are struggling to survive. The reduction in aid is particularly catastrophic for those with disabilities and vulnerable groups, leaving many with no means to sustain themselves. The loss of U.S. support, which previously accounted for a significant portion of humanitarian assistance, is exacerbating the crisis, pushing refugees further into desperation and deepening the strain on Bangladesh’s already limited resources.”

Divya Bajpai, Executive Director of BRAC Europe, is also concerned about the impact of multiple cuts to Overseas Development Assistance budgets in Europe. She said that “given the multiple global crises we are currently facing, we should be cooperating much more closely internationally, but instead, more and more countries are instrumentalizing development policy for their national interests and foreign policy goals. Paradoxically,  the need for humanitarian aid and development investment is growing, while the amounts allocated for this purpose are continually being cut.”

Indeed, the foreign aid cuts have serious impacts on the people BRAC serves, many of whom experience extreme poverty and live on less than $2.15 per day.

“These programme terminations are not about numbers, but real lives—like the 200,000 young Afghan adults eager to learn and earn a decent wage,” says Julia Roberts, CEO of BRAC USA. “Our participants are our partners, and their potential is our top priority today as much as ever.”

In Bangladesh, Asif Saleh emphasizes how U.S. foreign assistance has helped improve health care, in particular, across the country. “The funding supported increasing vaccination rates and reducing child and maternal mortality,” he says. “Without this support, essential services are at risk.”

As the largest NGO founded and led from the Global South, BRAC has worked to help communities scale frugal innovations that work for over half a century. Evidence shows our programmes lift people out of poverty and provide lasting results. They make communities more resilient, and countries stronger and safer. BRAC’s work is more critical than ever, and we remain dedicated to scaling proven poverty solutions and standing with the people we serve.

“Poverty isn’t distant—it’s BRAC’s reality,” Roberts adds. “We don’t design solutions thousands of miles away from the problems—we are led first and always by the needs of the communities we work alongside.”

BRAC’s portfolio of affected U.S. Government awards totalled more than $100 million. BRAC awaits payment on more than $1 million of unpaid invoices for work completed on U.S.-funded grants through January 20, when the freeze began via an Executive Order and promised review of programmes.