A sudden halt to American-funded aid programs in Mozambique has put the lives of millions at risk, as critical supply chains for HIV, malaria, and maternal health services face disruption. The cuts, effective since 20 January, have left essential healthcare services scrambling for alternatives, with no immediate solutions in sight.
Much of the problem arises from the shutdown of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), which among other plans had been expecting to spend $64m in Mozambique this year on materials to combat HIV, including testing kits, treatments and preventatives. With these initiatives now in limbo, Mozambique faces the risk of escalating public health crises, just as United Nations officials have called for urgent action in the country to address the “trio of crises”: conflict, climate change and worsening living conditions.
