The China Mail - Ghana scrambles to fill $156 million shortfall after USAID freeze

A funding freeze ordered by President Donald Trump at USAID, Washington's main foreign development arm, has upended the agency, seen thousands lose their jobs in the United States and abroad and halted humanitarian programmes across the world.

"I don't know what's going to happen to me," an HIV patient in the capital Accra told AFP. He is one of an estimated 150,000 individuals in Ghana who depend on USAID-funded antiretroviral drugs and doctors have warned of potential disruptions to supplies.

Medical supply chain issues are expected throughout the country, warned Abdulai Abukari, Northern Region medical director for the Ghana Health Service.

"We are staring at potential stockouts, which could see a rise in preventable diseases, maternal deaths, and a resurgence of viruses like malaria and tuberculosis," he said. The funding pullback has affected US-funded "last mile" programmes which help health supplies reach rural areas.

The halt to work at the US Agency for International Development (USAID), which have left most of its initiatives in limbo, comes as the White House and Trump advisor Elon Musk have pushed false information about the agency as they allege fraud and wasteful spending.

Legal challenges have mounted as the Trump administration pushes its budget slashing without congressional approval, and officials have claimed that life-saving programmes could be exempted.

But in Ghana the funding disruptions are already biting.

- Farmers without fertiliser -

"It's terrifying to think that my survival depends on aid that can be taken away just like that," the HIV patient, who declined to share his name, said.

The health sector is bracing for a $78.2 million shortfall, out of the $156 million hole the country now faces from the withdrawal of US-funded initiatives, said presidential spokesman Felix Kwakye Ofosu.

Sulemana Iddrisu, a farmer in the country's north, is facing the upcoming rainy season worried he will not be able to get by without USAID-subsidized fertilisers or seeds.

While the UN World Food Programme has noted progress over the past two decades in reducing hunger in Ghana, the rural north in particular is battling poverty, climate change and poor infrastructure.

"If we don't get the fertilisers and seeds on time, our yields will drop drastically... it means less food in the markets, higher prices for everyone, and possible food shortages across the country," said 56-year-old Iddrisu.

"That means less food for my family and less money to pay for my children’s school fees," he told AFP.

- Ally cut off -

Ghana, a longtime US ally in the region, is looking for ways to plug the funding gaps including reallocation of funds toward essential programmes like malaria prevention, maternal health and HIV/AIDS treatment.

The government is "engaging international partners and financial institutions, including the World Bank, the African Development Bank and the European Union, to secure grants and loans for sustaining key development projects," said Ofosu.

President John Mahama in a statement said he instructed the finance ministry "to explore all possible funding avenues" to help critical sectors like health and agriculture "remain operational."

Yet in the short term, many are worried.

"It's good that the government is trying to step in," said Abukari, from the Ghana Health Service.

"But without immediate international support, the situation could spiral out of control."

For farmers like Iddrisu, the outlook is grim.

"We can only pray," he said.

K.Leung--ThChM