The US reversed some cuts to the TB and malaria programs, according to sources

According to two sources familiar with the programs and one of the NGOs, Reuters has obtained letters reversing the decision to abruptly terminate U.S. financing contracts for several critical health projects last week.

The aid recipients said the decisions were encouraging, but they are still in a state of uncertainty because the largest donor in the world has not yet resumed supporting their initiatives.

The global aid community was rocked last Thursday when the Trump administration canceled around 90% of contracts that were sponsored by the U.S. State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

According to Michael Adekunle Charles, CEO of the RBM Partnership to End Malaria, the letter from his organization overturning that ruling was received late on Wednesday.

“I believe the news is positive. For more direction, we will have to wait in the next few days,” he stated. “Our priority is saving lives, so the earlier we can get started to continue saving lives the better.”

Charles acknowledged that would be challenging, though, unless money began to come in again. On Thursday, a few American grantees and foreign aid contractors will go before a federal judge in the United States to battle for the restoration of their funds.

No reaction was immediately available from the U.S. State Department.
According to two people close to the organizations, termination notifications for other U.N.-hosted and partially U.S.-funded programs, such as the Stop TB Partnership, were also revoked this week, Reuters said.

Trump’s first day back in office was a 90-day halt to all U.S. foreign aid. Humanitarian assistance efforts around the world have been thrown into disarray as a result of that move and the stop-work orders that followed, which have placed USAID’s operations around the world on hold. The administration also cut 1,600 jobs and put the majority of USAID employees on leave.

Following the terminations last week, additional confusion was caused by later exemptions for a portion of the work.