Cuts to USAID Funding Could Result in 14 Million Deaths by 2030

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A recent study published by ISGlobal warns that the potential dissolution of USAID due to budget cuts could lead to an additional 14 million deaths worldwide by 2030, with 4.5 million of those victims being children under five. The findings highlight that individuals would predominantly perish from preventable conditions such as AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria, exacerbated by poverty and insufficient healthcare access. Researchers from Brazil, Mozambique, the US, and Spain participated in the study, led by Davide Rasella from the Barcelona Institute for Global Health.

The report underscores that nearly 83% of USAID programs have been canceled following a freeze on development aid funds announced by the Trump administration. As a result, critical health initiatives, including tuberculosis control agencies in 31 countries, have ceased operations. The disruptions have also placed 27 million people at risk of severe hunger due to the closure of the World Food Programme's southern Africa office. Furthermore, experts argue that the cuts jeopardize decades of progress in health and socioeconomic development.

According to Rasella, the implications reach beyond immediate deaths, highlighting a cascading effect that could severely affect vulnerable populations already grappling with health crises.

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