Seville, Spain, July 2, 2025 (Lusa) - The World Bank’s chief executive on Wednesday played down the definitive end of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), stressing that changes are normal and that involvement is mainly with the US Treasury.
“Countries restructure their industries, and the United States joins others in this effort; it is in the nature of governments,” said Axel van Trotsenburg in an interview with Lusa regarding the World Bank’s participation in the conference on development financing taking place this week in Seville, Spain.
“It is important to emphasise that our cooperation with the US continues, we often discuss matters directly with the US Treasury,” which has the same function as the Ministry of Finance in European governments, said the World Bank’s number two.
The US government, led by Donald Trump, announced on Tuesday night the end of USAID operations, which was created in 1961 and has been considered the world’s largest distributor of humanitarian aid for decades.
USAID had been in the process of dismantling since February, when public spending cuts, promoted by tycoon Elon Musk, began. However, as of Tuesday, the State Department has taken over the management of all US international assistance.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio stressed in a statement that USAID can still meet its objectives and that it created a network of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) that lived “at the expense of American taxpayers”.
“This era of inefficiency has officially come to an end. Under the Trump administration, we will finally have foreign aid that prioritises our national interests,” he said.
Rubio said that US citizens’ tax dollars “will go toward constructive initiatives rather than failed governments in distant countries” and promised that, from now on, “aid will be targeted and limited in time”.
In an interview with Lusa via videoconference from Seville, Axel van Trotsenburg acknowledged that ‘the decision has been made,’ but stressed: ‘We are working with different agencies and new constellations and have been doing so for decades; I see this as another move and we will work in that context.’
Humanitarian aid experts and international organisations widely criticise the end of USAID, warning that its closure creates a substantial need for new health, education and humanitarian crisis response programmes.
Former U.S. Presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush offered constructive comments about the Trump administration on Monday. At the same time, singer Bono, moved, recited a poem at a farewell event for USAID.
The Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) coordinated a study, which was subsequently published in The Lancet. The study highlighted that maintaining US aid could prevent more than 14 million “preventable” deaths by 2030.
According to the study, USAID has had a fundamental impact on reducing mortality from HIV/AIDS, malaria and neglected tropical diseases worldwide.
USAID was created in 1961 by then-President John F. Kennedy to channel foreign aid for development and humanitarian assistance.
However, throughout its history, critics have often commended the agency on using aid as a tool for political influence and favouring Washington’s strategic interests over local needs.
MBA/ADB // ADB.
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