NGOS’ BLOW AS US ENDS USAID FUNDING

MBABANE – The fear of the worst has become a reality for non-governmental organisations (NGOs), as foreign aid through USAID has been reportedly terminated.

Following a recent period of relief after the restoration of foreign aid through United States under its Agency for International Development (USAID), Eswatini, alongside several other countries, has begun receiving notices of funding termination.

The Director of the Coordinating Assembly for Non-Governmental Organisations (CANGO), Thembinkosi Dlamini, confirmed that several organisations in the country have received notices of termination, although he was unable to specify which ones, as the notifications were still generic. “We have received alerts from some organisations in the country that they have been informed of the termination,” he said.

Dlamini also highlighted the severity of the situation, warning that Eswatini could lose up to 70 per cent of the funding it receives from USAID . A termination notice, which has circulated widely on social media, reportedly issued to some organisations, states that the award is being terminated ‘for convenience and in the interests of the US Government’.

The notice cites a directive from US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Peter W. Marocco, the acting Deputy Administrator for USAID, stating that the award is not aligned with agency priorities and that continuing the programme is not in the national interest.

The notice directs recipients to cease all activities immediately, terminate sub-awards and contracts, and avoid incurring additional costs associated with the termination. Dlamini said if the worst happens and some programmes funded by USAID, the job losses would have a major impact in the economy of the country. Dlamini said: “At the moment, as some of their programmes are suspended, those benefitting from the human traffic are going to feel the pinch.” He said this started with the mode of transport for those commuting to work through public transport to fuel stations for motorists cascading down to vendors and other shops where they bought from on a daily basis.

Jobs

This directive, according to Dlamini, has an impact of over 4 000 jobs losses and shall have an impact on data collectors as they were remunerated per day. He said this also cascaded to contractors they had in the various communities where their projects were ongoing.

The economist said more families will suffer as a single working person on average caters to over seven people. It is worth noting that among these executive orders, three particularly stand out as potentially impactful for Eswatini’s trade relations, health emergency responses and climate change initiatives. One of the Executive Orders the President of the US Donald Trump signed is the withdrawal of the US from the World Health Organisation (WHO).

According to the new executive order, Trump is pulling the US out of the World Health Organisation (WHO). He also signed an order to quit the ‘unfair one-sided Paris climate accord rip off’. It’s a major setback for the fight against climate change in the US, the world’s second-largest greenhouse gas emitter. Additionally, Trump announced the withdrawal of foreign aid.

According to the order, the US foreign aid will be paused for 90 days to review and ensure alignment with US interests. All department and agency heads with responsibility for US foreign development assistance programmes shall immediately pause new obligations and disbursements of development assistance funds to foreign countries.

This development follows a period of uncertainty, as Eswatini had recently breathed a sigh of relief after the US approved an ‘Emergency Humanitarian Waiver’ under USAID, offering a temporary pause on foreign assistance funding to evaluate its alignment with US foreign policy. This termination raises concerns about the continuity of essential HIV services, particularly for the over 215 000 people living with HIV in the country.

According to the CANGO director, this period was for the US government to do reviews on whether the funding given to countries aligns with US policy, hence the letters of termination currently rolling in. Despite the approval of the waiver, the subsequent shutdown of the USAID headquarters, ordered by President Trump and billionaire Elon Musk, sparked anxiety about the future of foreign aid in Eswatini.

The decision was described as a significant threat to crucial aid programmes, including those related to HIV/AIDS treatment. In a social media announcement, Musk expressed his belief that USAID had become ‘beyond repair’, leading to the agency’s closure.

Employees

In response to the shutdown, USAID staff was reportedly instructed not to access the agency’s headquarters, and its official website was also taken offline, leaving many employees locked out of vital systems. Local NGOs were advised against speaking to the media regarding the impact of these developments.

Meanwhile, 215 000 people living with HIV/AIDS, which is 27 per cent of the adult population (people), have their health under threat. This happened at a time when Eswatini, which has a population of over 215 000 people enrolled in antiretroviral treatment (ART), received about E831.15 million (US$44.42million) on HIV/AIDS assistance. The aid dedicated to HIV/AIDS is a larger share of the E 935.55 million (US$50.05 million) support from the USAID which was allocated to Eswatini in 2024.

The funds from these agencies are crucial for purchasing antiretroviral drugs, condoms, pre-exposure prophylaxis and for enhancing systems for collecting and analysing data on epidemiology, including interactions between diseases such as HIV/AIDS, diabetes and hypertension.

The funding dedicated to addressing HIV/AIDS is said to have since been terminated. The termination of the funding has come at a time when entities like The Luke Commission (TLC) and emaSwati relying on the health facility were facing challenges due to a lack of resources.

Patients

TLC last month announced that it would be suspending several outpatient services for patients aged 50 and older, as well as most inpatient services. One of the reasons for halting the services is the depletion of E30 million in relief funds availed by government, which has since extended another E20 million which, however, is a drop in the ocean.  
TLC, according to the USAID website, last year received funding to the tune of about E125.44 million (US$6.69 million), when converted in yesterday’s exchange rate of US$1 being equivalent to E18.72. This is against the backdrop of overwhelming demand, which has consistently surpassed the available resources.

TLC is the only health facility which meets First World status in Eswatini and is flooded with many emaSwati as they are guaranteed to get all their medication unlike the most public health facilities.On the other hand, Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation has been the highest beneficiary from USAID Eswatini.

This is because the entity in the past year received a larger share among the top partners of USAID Eswatini. The entity was awarded E155 756 250 (US$8.307 million), when converted in yesterday’s exchange rate. It was followed by Pact World which received E127 818 750 and the third highest benefitting entity was TLC with E125.44 million. 

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