Trump admin to cut vaccine support to developing countries
KATHMANDU: The Donald Trump administration is planning to reduce funding for GAVI, a global health organisation dedicated to increasing vaccine access in developing countries, according to a report by The New York Times.
The decision was outlined in a 281-page spreadsheet sent by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to Congress on Monday night, as reported by the NYT, which obtained a copy of the document. The spreadsheet lists international aid programmes slated for termination by the administration, alongside those that will be retained.
“The documents provide a sweeping overview of the extraordinary scale of the administration's retreat from a half-century-long effort to present the United States to the developing world as a compassionate ally and to lead the fight against infectious diseases that kill millions of people annually,” the NYT report stated.
A State Department spokesperson confirmed the accuracy of the terminations listed, explaining that “each award terminated was reviewed individually for alignment with agency and administration priorities, and terminations were executed where Secretary Marco Rubio determined the award was inconsistent with the national interest or agency policy priorities,” according to the report.
Since its establishment in 2000, GAVI has played a pivotal role in global health, vaccinating over 1.1 billion children across 78 countries and preventing more than 18.8 million future deaths.
