The sudden halt in U.S. foreign aid has thrown global hunger relief efforts into disarray, leaving 500,000 metric tons of food aid worth $340 million stranded in transit or storage. Humanitarian organizations are struggling to navigate the aid freeze, which was imposed by the Trump administration on January 20 for a 90-day review of all foreign aid programs.
Despite assurances that emergency food assistance would continue, funding for crucial programs—including cash aid for food purchases in Sudan and Gaza and community kitchens—has been suspended. The closure of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) has further compounded the crisis, leaving aid groups without guidance on famine conditions and struggling to secure funding for emergency food operations.
The situation has sparked alarm among aid workers, with experts warning of dire consequences for malnourished populations worldwide. However, in a late development, the U.S. government reversed stop-work orders on two key manufacturers of nutritional supplements for starving children.
Source: Reuters
