In January 2025, when President Donald Trump took office a second time, one of his first actions was to slash U.S. foreign aid. The process started with a 90-day review, but in early February 2025, the USAID website was taken down. At the time, billionaire Elon Musk, who was brought on as a “special government employee,” said they spent the weekend “feeding USAID into the wood chipper.”
By March, 83 percent of USAID programs ceased to exist. These abrupt changes caused chaos among nongovernmental organizations worldwide — including organizations that help women in Africa access family-planning information and resources.
