The United States' significant reduction in foreign aid is currently impacting the Democratic Republic of Congo, where an unidentified, deadly illness spreading with Ebola-like symptoms has emerged. This disease, which has claimed the lives of over 60 people and affected more than 1,000, coincides with an Ebola outbreak in Uganda and rising political violence in the DRC. Experts cite the dismantling of USAID's capabilities, particularly under the Trump administration, as a critical factor hindering effective response efforts. The absence of vital on-ground support reduces disease surveillance and response potential, leading to dire consequences in affected areas.
"Medical staff along the Uganda-DRC border have been terminated. Soldiers are everywhere. The laboratory built to deal with zoonotic diseases with US funding is empty," says Tim Allen, a London School of Economics professor and tropical-disease-control expert on the ground at the border of Uganda and the DRC.
"We don't have the in-country presence," she says. USAID previously provided key infrastructure and support for disease surveillance and prevention; it worked in tandem with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on complementary tasks, Bouri says.
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