The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has canceled or frozen several development projects in Liberia, totaling approximately $51 million, as reported by Augustine Ngafuan, the country’s finance minister.
These cancellations affect critical areas such as elections, health, education, and domestic revenue collection.
In a statement before the Liberian Senate Ad Hoc Committee, Minister Ngafuan confirmed that three additional projects had been added to the list of terminated initiatives, and the full impact of these measures is still being assessed by the administration.
Among the affected projects are a $2.9 million water and health infrastructure project, a $185,000 community monitoring project managed by an NGO, and a $19 million effort to enhance the Ministry of Finance’s monitoring and evaluation processes.
The program most significantly affected is the $23.4 million Education System Strengthening Project, which aimed to enhance the nation’s educational system. Other impacted programs include a $15.9 million project focused on elections and democracy and a $17.9 million initiative for local empowerment and decentralization.
Ngafuan emphasized that the freeze on the local tax system transformation project, which depended heavily on USAID funding, jeopardizes Liberia’s goal of generating $1 billion in domestic revenue.
Additionally, a $20 million school meal program and an $11 million fund for COVID-19 awareness and vaccination have also been canceled.
Liberia is one of over 100 countries affected by the aid freeze imposed by the new U.S. President Donald Trump. This suspension impacts nearly $40 billion allocated for development. In early February, President Trump established a new Department of Government Efficiency, which is headed by the world’s richest man, Elon Musk.
The department has halted all spending by USAID for 90 days, pending further notice.
