USAID Closing Process Begins, As Many As 400 Employees Fired

USAID Headquarters in Washington DC, United States. (Anadolu)

JAKARTA - More than 400 employees of the United States International Development Agency (USAID) have been dismissed in recent days, the New York Times said.

The US media, citing a number of USAID officials and employees, also reported the dismissal of 36 Office of Transition Initiatives (OTI) employees, USAID units assisting partner countries in the political transition and democratic initiatives.

It was also reported that 200 of USAID employees were dismissed from work at humanitarian aid bureaus, while the other 200 in the "support and assistance" division handled the distribution of aid for natural disasters and armed conflict.

Many employees who have been fired have worked in USAID for 25 years and have experience serving in conflict zones, including in Syria, Afghanistan, and Ukraine.

On February 2, billionaire Elon Musk, who heads a new department called DOGE (Departmentof GovernmentEffectiveness), called USAID a "crime organization" that "must be dissolved."

Musk also admitted that President Donald Trump agreed to close the USAID and the closing process was ongoing. USAID funding has also been frozen.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who Trump appointed as acting head of USAID, previously said that the government would review the agency to ensure that its programs are funded according to the current US government's foreign policy.

Rubio, who assessed USAID's funds so far, has "harmmed" the US, said that aid could be disbursed or even increased after the evaluation was carried out.