Revision of Global Health Assistance by the State Department Centers on Bilateral Agreements
The Trump administration has announced a new strategy for global health aid, focusing on bilateral agreements with binding conditions. This shift aims to reduce overlap and foster self-sufficiency in partner countries, while prioritizing key allies and potentially altering the regional distribution of investments. Under this new approach, the US has vowed to pay '100% of the frontline costs' for global health initiatives until the start of the next fiscal year. This commitment includes frontline healthcare workers, a significant investment in the fight against global health challenges. The strategy, internally named 'America First', seeks to address what the administration has argued as a 'culture of dependency' created by previous international assistance practices. The goal is for countries to become more self-sufficient, with various public health programs eventually shifting to 'long-term country ownership'. The State Department's stated goal is to reduce the need for ongoing assistance, thereby reducing the US's financial burden. However, some countries may experience 'changes in funding' as a result of these shifts. The US, Mexico, and Canada are currently engaged in consultations for a high-stakes review of their $2-trillion trade agreement. Meanwhile, Africa is expected to continue to be a focus, but there will be increased investment in the Western Hemisphere and Asia-Pacific. The renegotiation process in 2026 is predicted to be fraught with difficulties and may go 'off the rails'. Many who negotiated the original deal are no longer in the White House, raising fears that Trump's brinksmanship may derail the review. The new strategy has raised concerns among US-Africa watchers about the Trump administration's openness to working with multilateral health institutions like Africa CDC. The strategy does not explicitly mention its implementation in a specific country, but countries involved with the Global Fund and cooperating in health financing transitions include more than 20 countries. In other news, the US president is joining Silicon Valley top brass on a state visit to the UK, highlighting a wave of tech investments in the UK. Elsewhere, the US military has continued its crackdown on Latin American cartels, striking another Venezuelan ship allegedly carrying drugs. In domestic news, retail sales in the US rose in August for a third straight month, despite other gloomy economic signals. The US suspect in the assassination of conservative US activist Charlie Kirk was charged with aggravated murder. Finally, Africa is expected to continue to be a focus, but there will be increased investment in the Western Hemisphere and Asia-Pacific. The president's fiscal year 2026 budget proposal recommends roughly $4 billion for global health funding. It's unclear how much money the US plans to spend with this new program, but it's likely to be lower than prior years, reflecting the administration's bid to pare back international assistance that doesn't focus on 'the interests of Americans'. Israel launched a ground offensive into Gaza City, further eroding prospects for a ceasefire in the enclave. The new plan comes as US-Africa watchers in Washington raise concerns about the Trump administration's openness to working with multilateral health institutions like Africa CDC. The strategy follows sweeping cuts across federal agencies, including the hollowing-out of the US Agency for International Development and the pausing of some funding for PEPFAR, the federal government's central AIDS relief program. OpenAI has announced a version of ChatGPT for teens, which automatically directs under-18 users to an age-appropriate variant of the bot and can contact law enforcement in some cases. Malawi's former leader Peter Mutharika is poised to return to power in elections, highlighting the gerontocracy leading the world's youngest continent.
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