The New York Times published on 29 June 2025 a commentary titled "I Worked at U.S.A.I.D. for over 8 Years. This Is Our Biggest Failure" by William Herkewitz.
This is the account of a former USAID employee in Ethiopia, Kenya, and Rwanda. He identifies the positive role USAID played in humanitarian emergencies and what it will unlikely be able to do going forward following the dismantlement of the foreign aid agency.
The New York Times published on 22 June 2025 an article titled "What Remains of U.S.A.I.D.?" by Amy Schoenfeld Walker, Malika Khurana, and Christine Zhang.
The USAID projects that survived DOGE dismantlement of the agency are the result of pleas and negotiations of a few politically important people, many of whom had little experience in foreign aid. Some 891 programs constituting 14 percent of the previous total and $69 billion survived and will be administered by the State Department. DOGE cancelled USAID projects worth $76 billion over several years.
There was no comprehensive review of previous programs. The focus going forward is addressing acute disease, hunger, and other humanitarian emergencies. The State Department does not have the staff, resources, or expertise to oversee the programs that survived DOGE cuts.
Time published on 16 January 2025 a commentary titled "Locals in Sudan Are Saving Lives that International Aid Agencies Can't Reach" by Karl Vick.
Sudan faces the world's largest humanitarian crisis, and the government has ceased to function. A grass roots campaign has created more than 600 pop-up community centers known as Emergency Response Rooms (EERs) to do what would normally be expected of a government.
Foreign Policy published on 25 October 2024 a commentary titled "How the U.N. Can Prevent Genocide in Sudan" by Romeo Dallaire and Shelly Whitman.
While a UN peacekeeping force in Sudan is not politically feasible at the moment, a multinational or African Union-led protection force with troops from willing countries could be mounted to protect civilians. Initially, it could establish safe zones or safe corridors for civilians to facilitate the delivery of emergency aid.
The Associated Press published on 11 April 2023 an article titled "UN Agency Investigating Humanitarian Food Theft in Ethiopia."
The World Food Program is investigating the theft of emergency food aid from a warehouse in Sheraro, a town in northern Tigray Region. It is not clear who is responsible for the theft.
Reuters published on 3 August 2021 an article titled "Fighting Displaces 200,000 in Ethiopia's Amhara Region--U.N. Aid Chief."
Tigray Defense Forces have moved into Amhara Region, displacing 200,000 people in the process. The US called on Tigrayans to withdraw from Amhara and Afar Regions.
The International Crisis Group (ICG) published on 11 February 2021 a report titled "Finding a Path to Peace in Ethiopia's Tigray Region."
The ICG argues the government in Addis Ababa should ensure that Eritrean and Amhara regional forces that participated in the intervention withdraw from Tigray Region. It also should urgently allow aid to reach all Tigrayans who need it. Ultimately, inclusive dialogue is needed to address federal-Tigray disagreements and wider disputes over regional autonomy.
Agence France Presse published on 10 February 2021 an article titled "Ethiopian Red Cross Says 80 Percent of Tigray Cut Off from Aid" by Robbie Corey-Boulet.
The Ethiopian Red Cross said on 10 February that 80 percent of Tigray Region is still cut off from humanitarian assistance. Access is largely restricted to the area around Mekelle. The Red Cross estimates that 3.8 million of Tigray's 6 million people need humanitarian assistance.
The World Food Program published on 6 February 2021 a statement titled "Joint UN-Government Tigray Mission Highlights Humanitarian Needs and Path Forward."
The executive director of the World Food Program (WFP) and Ethiopia's federal minister of peace recently visited Tigray Region to assess emergency food needs. The WFP estimates that 2.5 to 3 million people in Tigray require emergency food assistance. WFP and the government of Ethiopia have agreed to jointly address the problem.
