Washington D.C. – May 17, 2025
— Facing mounting pressure from humanitarian organizations and its own field operatives, the U.S. government announced today that it will reverse recent budget cuts to the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) after reports confirmed that millions of pounds of food aid have been sitting idle in warehouses—some already beginning to spoil—while famine conditions worsen across parts of Africa, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia.
The decision follows weeks of internal debate and growing alarm from aid workers, who warned that logistical disruptions caused by the funding freeze were preventing critical shipments of grain, cooking oil, and nutritional supplements from reaching populations on the brink of starvation.
“We cannot, in good conscience, allow food meant to save lives to sit and rot,” USAID Administrator Samantha Power said in a press briefing Thursday. “The decision to restore and accelerate funding is not just a logistical necessity—it’s a moral imperative.”
The cuts, part of a broader package of austerity measures aimed at reducing federal spending, had halted nearly $2 billion in programmed shipments. That pause left containers of U.S.-purchased food stranded in ports from Djibouti to Bangladesh, and warehouses from Kansas to Kenya.
Photos obtained by humanitarian groups showed pallets of fortified grain deteriorating in high heat, while children in drought-stricken regions went days without meals. One internal USAID memo described the situation as “a humanitarian disaster compounded by policy error.”
The outcry from aid groups was swift and unrelenting.
“We were watching lifesaving food spoil while mothers buried their children,” said Leila Hassan, regional director for the International Rescue Committee. “It’s a betrayal of what American aid is supposed to stand for. But we’re relieved action is finally being taken.”
According to officials, a new emergency directive from the White House will reinstate USAID’s food assistance budget to full operational levels and prioritize the immediate airlift and distribution of perishable goods currently held in domestic and international storage facilities.
“We’ll work around the clock to move this food to where it’s needed most,” said Gen. James McAllister, who is coordinating logistics under the U.S. Southern Command. “Every hour counts when lives are at stake.”
The political calculus behind the cuts is already facing scrutiny. Some lawmakers who supported the initial reductions have begun distancing themselves, while others are calling for oversight hearings to understand how the situation deteriorated so rapidly.
“We made a mistake,” said Sen. Mark Daniels (R-OH), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “This isn’t about politics. This is about people—millions of them—who depend on our leadership and our compassion.”
Though the reversal has been welcomed by the international community, experts say the episode highlights broader concerns about the stability of American humanitarian commitments in a shifting political climate.
“This moment underscores the fragility of aid systems when they’re politicized,” said Dr. Nina Alvarez, a development policy expert at Georgetown University. “Aid must be driven by need, not polling or budget math.”
For now, relief teams across the globe are preparing to resume operations—with a renewed sense of urgency and, for many, cautious hope.
“We can’t undo what’s already been lost,” said Hassan. “But we can stop this from getting worse. And right now, that means getting food out of warehouses and into the hands of the hungry.”
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