Report: The suspension of humanitarian aid from Trump endangers 14mm of death

Former US President Donald Trump's decision to significantly cut funds for international humanitarian aid could have catastrophic global consequences, warns a study published in the prestigious magazine The Lancet.

According to the study, cuts could cause over 14 million avoidable deaths by 2030, including more than 4.5 million children under the age of five.

Researchers stress that one third of the potential victims are children, while the worst effects are expected in low and medium-income countries.

State Secretary Marco Rubio confirmed in March that the Trump administration had cancelled over 80% of American Agency for International Development programmes (USAID), one of the main sources of financing for global humanitarian aid.

For many developing countries, these cuts are comparable to a global pandemic or a major armed conflict”, said Davide Rasella, coauthor of the report and researcher at the Barcelona Institute for Global Health. According to him, these “disruptions are at risk of halting or even overturning the double progress in the public health field”.

The report was released on the eve of an international humanitarian aid conference held this week in Seville, Spain, where dozens of world leaders are discussing strategies to fill the gap created by the lack of American funding.

Researchers analyzed data from 133 countries and estimated USAID's assistance has saved 91 million lives between 2001 and 2021. They used statistical modeling to predict the consequences of an 83% cut in funding, a figure announced by the American administration earlier this year, and came to an alarming conclusion that this policy would lead to tens of millions of lives, many of which avoidable.

This analysis adds pressure to the international community to fill the vacuum created by US evacuation and to ensure that progress in the fight against premature mortality is not lost. /Periscope/