Policy Updates

On August 13, 2025, a US court ruled that the Trump administration could continue to withhold billions of dollars in foreign assistance, clearing the way for the administration to cut already-appropriated spending for foreign assistance.

The court found that development organizations that receive government funding do not have cause to challenge the funding cuts. The decision overturned a lower court’s March 2025 order that had required the administration to continue processing foreign assistance payments, including nearly US$4 billion for global health activities through September 2025 and more than US$6 billion for HIV/AIDS programs through 2028. The new ruling noted that the administration had already paid out substantially to existing contracts since the lower court's ruling in March 2025.

The panel also ruled that under the Impoundment Control Act of 1974, only the GAO, Congress's independent watchdog, could legally challenge the president’s efforts to withhold foreign assistance funding. The Impoundment Control Act of 1974 was enacted to limit the president's power to withhold funding that has been appropriated by Congress. While the GAO has the power to sue to force the release of funds, it has not yet done so.

On August 12, 2025, the UNDP, with US$10 million in funding from the Republic of Korea, launched the REVIVE project in Afghanistan to support over 350,000 people.

The project will run from July 2025 to July 2026 across six provinces: Badakhshan, Zabul, Daikundi, Faryab, Khost, and Nangarhar. The REVIVE project focuses on creating emergency employment, rehabilitating essential infrastructure, and improving community-level food security, with an emphasis on climate resilience and women’s empowerment.

UNDP Resident Representative in Afghanistan Stephen Rodriques stated that the project serves as a bridge between crisis and recovery by investing in local resilience and sustainable opportunities.

Chargé d’affaires of the Republic of Korea to Afghanistan Sung-hwan Moon reaffirmed his country's commitment to supporting the Afghan people, particularly women, children, and refugees, and highlighted that the project will help communities rebuild livelihoods and move toward a self-reliant future.

On August 9, 2025, the UK announced an additional GBP8.5 million (US$11 million) in humanitarian funding for Gaza, urging Israel to allow more assistance into the territory and reverse its plan to expand military operations.

The funding will be delivered through the OCHA's OPT Humanitarian Fund to provide food, water, and fuel. The pledge is part of the UK's total GBP101 million (US$135 million) ODA budget for the OPT for the financial year, of which GBP60 million (US$80 million) is allocated to humanitarian support. The UK is the largest donor to the fund in 2025.

Minister for International Development Jenny Chapman stated that the humanitarian catastrophe is ongoing and called for a return to a ceasefire and the release of all hostages. Chapman noted that the new funding can only be effective if Israel allows more assistance to enter safely and securely.

On August 8, 2025, the JICA determined the issuance conditions for two "Africa-TICAD Bonds" totaling JPY23 billion (US$155 million) to finance development projects in Africa, coinciding with the 9^th TICAD.

The non-guaranteed Sustainability Bonds will be issued in two tranches: one of JPY15 billion (US$101 million) with a three-year maturity and another of JPY8 billion (US$54 million) with a five-year maturity.

The net proceeds are slated to support new or ongoing eligible projects within the JICA's Finance and Investment operations, as defined by the JICA Social/Sustainability Bond Framework. Funding will not be allocated to activities related to coal-fired thermal power projects. The initiative aims to mobilize private finance and support Africa's independent and sustainable growth.

On August 7, 2025, the US Department of State announced a US$93 million grant to UNICEF to provide lifesaving food aid to nearly a million children suffering from malnutrition across 13 countries.

The grant will provide 11,000 metric tons of American-made RUTF for approximately 800,000 children through June 2026 in Haiti, Mali, Niger, Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan, Nigeria, Madagascar, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Kenya, and Chad and support the transport of an additional 1,200 metric tons of abbrRUTF for 87,000 children. However, UNICEF noted that a further two-to-three-month delay is expected before the products are delivered. UNICEF USA President and CEO Michael J. Nyenhuis welcomed the commitment, which according to a department spokesperson will draw down the entire prepositioned stock of RUTF.

The funding was authorized after months of delays and is UNICEF's first large grant for 2025 from the US. The amount is less than half of what the US government has typically allocated for this purpose. In 2024, the former USAID spent about US$200 million on similar work.

The US has historically funded roughly half of the world's supply of RUTF, and the US funding freeze in early 2025 severely disrupted the global supply chain of nutrition commodities. US funds for 2025 still have not yet been released to manufacturers, the WFP, transporters, or many organizations that operate malnutrition programs. In Nigeria, the WFP has had to shut down 150 clinics, and other assistance organizations reported similar clinic closures and dangerously low supplies across Africa and Asia that put thousands of children's lives in immediate danger.

On August 4, 2025, JICA announced a US$6 million loan agreement with Thu Dau Mot Water Joint Stock Company to expand the Bau Bang Water Supply System in Vietnam.

The loan, co-financed by the ADB, will fund the construction of a new water treatment plant and an associated pipeline. The project aims to improve the urban sanitation environment and support sustainable economic growth in Bau Bang Hamlet, Ho Chi Minh City. The initiative contributes to SDG 6 (Clean water and sanitation) and 17 (Partnerships for the goals).

On August 4, 2025, the Australian government announced an additional AUD20 million (US$13 million) in humanitarian assistance for Gaza.

The funding will support organizations delivering food, medical supplies for field hospitals, and other support to women and children. The new package includes:

• AUD6 million (US$4 million) to the UN WFP for food supplies;
• AUD5 million (US$3 million) to UNICEF for nutritional support to children;
• AUD5 million (US$3 million) to the ICRC to meet essential needs, including access to healthcare;
• AUD2 million (US$1 million) for relief support with the UK; and
• AUD2 million (US$1 million) to the Jordan Hashemite Charity Organization for medical supplies.

The announcement brings Australia's total humanitarian commitment to Gaza and Lebanon to over AUD130 million (US$85 million) since October 2023. The government reiterated its call for an immediate ceasefire, the release of all hostages, and unimpeded aid access into Gaza.

On August 4, 2025, the Gates Foundation announced a US$2.5 billion commitment through 2030 to accelerate R&D focused on women’s health, this pledge comes as many donor governments, including the US, are reducing their ODA budgets, placing a greater emphasis on private philanthropy to fill funding gaps.

The funding aims to address chronic underinvestment in the sector, noting that only 1% of healthcare research is for female-specific conditions beyond oncology. The investment will support over 40 innovations across five priority areas:

• Obstetric care and maternal immunization;
• Maternal health and nutrition;
• Gynecological and menstrual health;
• Contraceptive innovation; and
• Sexually transmitted infections.

The foundation urged governments, philanthropists, and the private sector to co-invest to close funding gaps. The announcement cited research showing that every US$1 invested in women’s health yields US$3 in economic growth and that closing the gender health gap could boost the global economy by US$1 trillion annually by 2040.

On August 1, 2025, the French health ministry stated it could not legally intervene to stop the planned destruction of US$10 million in contraceptives held in Belgium, which were purchased by the USAID under former President Joe Biden and set to be destroyed by the administration of President Donald Trump, despite strong public outcry to intervene.

The US decision sparked criticism in France, with rights groups and left-wing politicians urging their government to halt the plan. France's health ministry, however, stated it had no legal basis to seize the products, as the products are not drugs of major therapeutic interest and no supply shortage exists in France. Multiple organizations, including MSI Reproductive Choices, offered to purchase the contraceptives at no cost to the US government, but their offers were rejected.

The contraceptives, mostly long-acting products like IUDs and birth control implants, were intended for countries in SSA and stored in Geel, Belgium. A US State Department spokesperson stated the decision to incinerate the unexpired products was based on the Mexico City Policy. The policy, reinstated in early 2025 by the Trump administration, prohibits providing assistance to NGOs that perform or promote abortions, though none of the products held in Belgium align with that description. The destruction was estimated by the US State Department to cost US$167,000.

On July 31, 2025, JICA held a signing ceremony for a US$90 million loan to HDBank to support Vietnam's agricultural sector.

The loan is co-financed with FinDev Canada and SMBC. The project aims to improve access to finance in Vietnam's agricultural sector by providing long-term loans through the bank, thereby contributing to the expansion of agricultural production and income.

The project is the second under the SMBC- JICA Sustainable Finance Framework and is also part of SAFE. The initiative contributes to SDG # 1, SDG # 2, and SDG # 8.