U.S. State Department's USAID takeover hampered by staffing gaps and IT issues, report finds

A U.S. State Department Office of Inspector General report said the rapid transfer of aid programmes from the shuttered U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) was plagued by staffing shortages, IT problems and delayed guidance. President Donald Trump ordered USAID’s closure after resuming office in January 2025, resulting in the dismissal of more than 10,000 employees and the cancellation of thousands of projects that supported millions of the world’s poorest.

The report noted that about $51.5 billion in obligated funds across 1,504 “green‑list” awards—covering conflict zones such as Ukraine, Israel and the Palestinian territories—were moved to the State Department while it was reorganising. About a third of the receiving offices had no prior foreign‑assistance experience; the department hired only 838 new staff, far fewer than the 2,300 positions requested. Guidance on updating award terms was not fully in place until December, and an AI‑driven data‑management tool suffered data problems. Africa received the largest share, with 639 awards and $17 billion transferred, but the Bureau of African Affairs obtained just 232 of the 732 staff it asked for, most of them locally employed at U.S. missions.

The State Department’s senior management said it was working to implement the Inspector General’s earlier recommendations.