"What's going on in the world?" Facing cuts: consequences and the future of international development cooperation
In this new edition of the "What’s going on in the world?" series of conferences, we will address the consequences of the cuts in international development aid for aid-dependent countries, as well as for the multilateral cooperation system and the Development Agenda, in the final stretch of the 2030 Agenda.
Sala Jordi Maragall, CIDOB. Elisabets 12, 08001 Barcelona
CIDOB
The announcement by the Trump Administration in the United States of the temporary closure of USAID, which affected 80% of its programmes in February 2025, caused shock due to its impact on numerous developing countries that suddenly saw a reduction in external aid for social programmes. This announcement is not an isolated event, coinciding with cuts in the main development agencies of several countries such as Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Belgium and Switzerland. These cuts are unlikely to be offset by contributions from other actors in the Global South. This raises questions about the future of the development cooperation system and the direct consequences for populations that have so far benefited from this aid.
This session will first address the immediate consequences of these cuts in aid-dependent countries in terms of the sustainability of assistance programmes and the effects on populations in need of such support. It will also discuss the medium and long-term consequences for the multilateral cooperation system and the Development Agenda itself in the final phase of the 2030 Agenda, within the context of the crisis of multilateralism. The debate will feature contributions from Claudia García-Vaz, Policy Analysis Coordinator at ISGlobal, and Iliana Olivié, Senior Researcher at Real Instituto Elcano, moderated by Anna Ayuso, Senior Researcher at CIDOB.
Participants
Anna Ayuso Pozo
Claudia García-Vaz
