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Kenya among big losers as US President Donald Trump puts foreign funding on ice

He decreed a 90-day pause in foreign development assistance for assessment of programmatic efficiencies and consistency with US foreign policy.  

Kenya is among countries that are likely to bear the blunt of some of the executive orders signed by new United States President Donald Trump on the first day of his return to the White House.

One of the executive orders issued by Trump introduced a new policy which states that no further foreign assistance shall be disbursed in a manner that is not fully aligned with the foreign policy of the President of the United States.

He had the same time decreed a 90-day pause in US foreign development assistance for assessment of programmatic efficiencies and consistency with US foreign policy.

All department and agency heads with responsibility for United States foreign development assistance programs shall immediately pause new obligations and disbursements of development assistance funds to foreign countries and implementing non-governmental organisations, international organisations, and contractors pending reviews of such programmes for programmatic efficiency and consistency with United States foreign policy, to be conducted within 90 days of this order.  The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) shall enforce this pause through its apportionment authority.”

“New obligations and disbursements of foreign development assistance funds may resume for a programme prior to the end of the 90-day period if a review is conducted, and the Secretary of State or his designeein consultation with the Director of OMB, decide to continue the programme in the same or modified form.  Additionally, any other new foreign assistance programmes and obligations must be approved by the Secretary of State or his designee, in consultation with the Director of OMB,” it adds

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According to the US Agency for International Development, Kenya is the fifth largest recipient of US aid in Africa and received a total of Ksh 110 billion (US$846.3 million) in 2023. Partial reporting for 2024 shows Kenya received funding totaling Ksh 90.5 billion (US$699 million).

Most of the funding goes into emergency response; health (especially the fight against HIV/Aids, basic health, maternal and child health, family planning); government and civil society; conflict, peace and security; and water and sanitation, among others.

The move also effectively means many of the multi-billion deals President William Ruto and outgoing US President Joe Biden inked during the State Visit to Washington last year will now have to undergo a review by the Trump administration.

A cut in US foreign assistance is likely to have a heavy impact on preparations for Kenya’s 2027 elections since Washington has been a major financier of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) and other institutions and civil society groups engaged in the democratic and governance spaces.

Data on the agency’s website shows that Kenya has received the highest US assistance in election years, which surpassed Ksh 129.5 billion (US$1 billion) in 2016, 2017 and 2022.

Other executive orders likely to impact on Kenya is the withdrawal of the US from the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Paris Agreement on climate change.

The US is the biggest funder of health programmes worldwide, especially in the developing world.

The withdrawal from the Paris Agreement also means the US will no longer take part in negotiations on combating climate change, including contributing to international public climate finance, which is geared towards adaptation and mitigation efforts in poor countries.

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