News: Dismantling USAID & Impact of Aid Freeze

Aid freeze:

"Inside the Chaos, Confusion, and Heartbreak of Trump’s Foreign-Aid Freeze," Time Magazine, 1 Feb. 2025 [text]

"‘People Will Die’: The Trump Administration Said It Lifted Its Ban on Lifesaving Humanitarian Aid. That’s Not True," Ms. Magazine, 3 Feb. 2025 [text]

Preliminary Findings from ICVA Survey on impact on humanitarian aid, local partners and NGOs (ICVA, Jan. 2025) [text]

- See also ICVA's resource page on the suspension of humanitarian aid.

Preventing Deaths During the 90-Day Assistance Freeze (CGD Blog, Feb. 2025) [text]

Trump Vol. 2 Will Impact Global Development (PRIO Blog, Jan. 2025) [text]

Trump’s Pause of U.S. Foreign Assistance to Latin America: An “America Last” Policy (WOLA, Jan. 2025) [text]

"Trump’s ‘America First’ approach is already hurting Americans," MSNBC, 31 Jan. 2025 [text]

"Which countries will Trump’s foreign aid suspension hurt most?," Al Jazeera, 31 Jan. 2025 [text]

USAID:

Can the President Dissolve USAID by Executive Order? (Just Security Blog, Feb. 2025) [text]

[Letter from Members of House & Senate Foreign Relations Committees to Acting USAID Administrator] (31 Jan. 2025) [text]

- Note: One of the signatories, Sen. Schatz, has indicated he will block Trump nominees until USAID is back up and running.

U.S. Agency for International Development: An Overview (US Congressional Research Service, Jan. 2025) [text]

"USAID to be merged into State Department, 3 U.S. officials say," CBS News, 3 Feb. 2025 [text]

- See also related CNN news article.

USAID Under the Trump Administration (US Congressional Research Service, 3 Feb. 2025) [text]

"What is USAID and why is Trump reportedly poised to close it?," BBC News, 3 Feb. 2025 [text]

 Related post:

- Thematic Focus: Humanitarian Assistance (30 Jan. 2025)

Guest post: Humanitarian Assistance to Migrants in Vulnerable Situations – Why Trust Matters

Contributed by the Red Cross Red Crescent Global Migration Lab

Despite growing evidence and concern of a breakdown in trust between migrants and humanitarian organisations, little is known about who migrants trust (and why) when accessing humanitarian assistance and protection. What’s more, there has been little global research into how trust or distrust impacts migrants’ ability and willingness to seek help at different stages of their journeys.

In the context of migration, trust in humanitarian organisations is critical given the vulnerabilities and risks many migrants face, as well as the increased securitisation of migration and the conflation of border and migration control policies with humanitarian aid. This post attempts to consolidate and draw on the resources available to inform practitioners’ work in this space and underscore the importance of continued research in this area.

In December 2022, the Red Cross Red Crescent Global Migration Lab ('the Lab') published a research report exploring migrants’ perceptions of humanitarian organisations and their experiences linked to accessing and receiving humanitarian assistance and protection throughout their journeys. The report - Migrants’ perspectives: Building trust in humanitarian action – is available in four languages (English, French, Spanish and Arabic) and analyses survey and interview data from nearly 17,000 migrants, including refugees, across 15 countries (Argentina, Australia, Finland, France, the Gambia, Honduras, Maldives, Mali, Niger, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Sweden, Turkey, and Zambia). 

The Lab’s report outlines the complexities of building and maintaining trust among migrants as they travel across borders and emphasizes the importance of the independence of humanitarian organisations – in both practice and perception. Indeed, fears that accessing humanitarian assistance and protection may lead to risks of deportation or detention were expressed by 25% of migrants, with the potential to hinder access to life-saving support. In addition, findings revealed a trail of unmet need along migrants’ journeys, with 79% needing support at one time during their journeys but not receiving it.

The report, while unique in its multi-country and cross-regional focus on migrants’ trust, also demonstrates the increasing vulnerabilities, risks and needs faced by migrants in the context of an increased securitization agenda and more restrictive border control policies that impact migrants’ safety, dignity and well-being. 

Issues related to the provision of humanitarian assistance and protection to migrants in vulnerable situations, and the multifaceted dynamics linked to the nature and circumstances of migrants’ travel and increasing needs on the ground, are further documented in the following list of resources. 

• Arias Cubas, Magdalena, Nicole Hoagland & Sanushka Mudaliar. 2023. "Migrants in Need Report Barriers to Assistance and Fragile Trust in Humanitarian Organizations," Migration Information Source. Migration Policy Institute. 
• Bakewell, Oliver. 2000. "Uncovering Local Perspectives on Humanitarian Assistance and Its Outcomes," Disasters, 24(2): 103-116.  
• Carrera, Sergio, Gabriella Sanchez, Lina Vosyliute, Stephanie Smialowski & Jennifer Allsopp. 2018. Fit for Purpose? The Facilitation Directive and the Criminalisation of Humanitarian Assistance to Irregular Migrants: 2018 Update. Migration Policy Centre.  
• Faure Atger, Anaïs. 2019. "EU Migration Strategy: Compromising Principled Humanitarian Action," Forced Migration Review, 61: 30-32. 
• Global Disaster Preparedness Centre (GDPC) & International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC). N.d. Humanitarian Service Points Digital Toolkit.  
• Grayson, Catherine-Lune. 2016. "Le Camp de Réfugiés de Kakuma, Lieu de Méfiance et de Défiance," Canadian Journal of Development Studies / Revue Canadienne d’études du Développement, 37(3): 341-357. 
• Hynes, Tricia. 2003. "The Issue of 'Trust' or 'Mistrust' in Research with Refugees: Choices, Caveats and Considerations for Researchers," New Issues in Refugee Research Working Paper, no. 98. UN High Commissioner for Refugees. 
• Independent Monitoring, Research, and Evidence Facility (IMREF). 2021. Exploring Migrants’ Trust in Humanitarian Organisations.  
• International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC). 2018. New Walled Order: How Barriers to Basic Services Turn Migration into a Humanitarian Crisis.  
• International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. 2019. Summary Report from Commission III: Trust in Humanitarian Action. Geneva: 33rd International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent. 
• Journal of International Humanitarian Action. 
• Kotsioni, Ioanna. 2016. "Detention of Migrants and Asylum-Seekers: The Challenge for Humanitarian Actors," Refugee Survey Quarterly, 35(2): 41-55.  
• Linde, Thomas. 2009. "Humanitarian Assistance to Migrants Irrespective of their Status – Towards a Noncategorical Approach," International Review of the Red Cross, 91(875): 567-578. 
• Mixed Migration Centre (MMC). 
• Nyberg Sørensen, Ninna & Sine Plambech, eds. 2019. Global Perspectives on Humanitarianism: When Human Welfare Meets the Political and Security Agendas. Danish Institute for International Studies. 
• Savio Vammen, Ida Marie, Sine Plambech, Ahlam Chemlali & Ninna Nyberg Sørensen. 2021. Does Information Save Migrants’ Lives? Knowledge and Needs of West African Migrants en Route to Europe. Danish Institute for International Studies. 

Thematic Focus: Humanitarian Assistance

Events:

Report launch: Exploring Coordination in Humanitarian Clusters, London, 15 June 2015 [info]
- Will also be livestreamed.

CFPs: World Conference on Humanitarian Studies, Addis Ababa, 5-8 March 2015 [info]
- NOTE: This conference has been *postponed*; it was originally scheduled to take place in October. The new deadlines for submitting panel and paper proposals are as follows: 1 Oct. 2015 for panels, 25 Dec. 2015 for papers.

Publications:

An ‘Almost Impossible Job’: 10 Tips for the UN's Next Humanitarian Boss (IRIN, May 2015) [text]

Global Forum for Improving Humanitarian Action, New York, 4-5 June 2015 [info]
- Follow link for several presentations, a detailed agenda, briefing papers, and other related information.

Humanitarian Assistance from Non-state Donors (Global Humanitarian Assistance, May 2015) [text]

The Innovation Racket (Acting, Fast & Slow Blog, May 2015) [text]

Secretary-General Appoints High-Level Panel on Humanitarian Financing (UN, May 2015) [text]
- See also related IPS news story and an IASC update.

UNHCR's Mandate in Relation to Assistance to Refugees and Other People of Concern (UNHCR, June 2015) [text]

What Do We Know about the Long-term Legacy of Aid Programmes? Very Little, So Why Not Go and Find Out? (From Poverty to Power Blog, May 2015) [text]

Which Way is up? Flatpacks Alone Can't Solve Global Shelter Crisis (IRIN, May 2015) [text]

Related post:
- Thematic Focus: Humanitarian Assistance (11 May 2015)

Tagged Publications and Events & Opportunities. 

Focus on Humanitarian Assistance

The first State of the Humanitarian System report was launched yesterday.  Here is part of the blurb:

This report presents a system-level mapping and analysis of the performance of international humanitarian assistance. The pilot report on the State of the Humanitarian System (SOHS) was published in 2010 and focused on the years 2007 and 2008. This report includes descriptive statistics from the following two years, 2009 and 2010, and reviews performance assessments from 2009 to the end of 2011, comparing findings from the two periods. The ‘international humanitarian system’ is defined here as the network of national and international provider agencies, donors and host-government authorities that are functionally connected to each other in the humanitarian endeavour and that share common overarching goals, norms and principles. The system also includes actors that do not have humanitarian assistance as their central mission but play important humanitarian roles, such as military and private-sector entities.

Other items relating to humanitarian assistance include: 

Annual Report 2011 (ICRC, June 2012) [access]

Are They Listening? Aid and Humanitarian Accountability (IRIN, July 2012) [access]
- New In-Depth report on aid policy.

The SG’s Report on the Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict: A Humanitarian Perspective (International Peace Institute, June 2012) [text via ReliefWeb]

Talking to the Other Side: Humanitarian Engagement with Armed Non-state Actors, HPG Policy Briefs, no. 47 (ODI, June 2012) [text]

Request for input:

Wide stakeholder survey on the value of the Humanitarian Response Index (DARA) [access]
- "...[W]e are launching a wide stakeholder consultation with key partners to rethink the best way to improve the effectiveness and impact of humanitarian action. We would accordingly welcome your views on the value and utility of the HRI to date and how it can become a more effective tool for a systemic improvement."


Tagged Publications and Events & Opportunities.  

Publications: Aid Agencies & Best Practice, Bhutanese/US, COI/NZ, DRC & Peacekeeping, Sahrawi Displ.

Country Information and Evidence Assessment in New Zealand (New Zealand Refugee Law, April 2011) [text]

DR Congo: Support Community-Based Tools for MONUSCO (Refugees International, May 2011) [text]

"Power and Politics in Resettlement: A Case Study of Bhutanese Refugees in the USA," New Issues in Refugee Research, no. 208 (UNHCR, May 2011) [text]

"Protracted Sahrawi Displacement: Challenges and Opportunities Beyond Encampment," Policy Briefing, no. 7 (RSC, May 2011) [text]

"Rhetoric versus Reality: The Best and Worst of Aid Agency Practices," World Development, forthcoming (2011) [preprint]

Tagged Publications.