What is the impact of aid cuts in Africa?

This Week in Global Development · Feb 12, 2026 · 26m

This week we take a look at a new report from the Center for Global Development, which found that aid cuts have largely failed to spark reform in sub-Saharan Africa. The caveat, though, is that the authors analyzed national budget data from June 2025 — shortly after the U.S. announced its drastic cuts, meaning the analysis doesn’t reflect efforts that have been taken since then.

But still, it challenges the viability of current financing models and highlights growing risks to essential social spending in recipient countries.

On the topic of sub-Saharan Africa, we examine the situation in…