The Weekly Pulse
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News From Organizations and Coalitions in Advocacy for Children and Young People Globally
Volume 275
May 7, 2026 Quick Summary
Big week for foreign assistance on Capitol Hill, as several measures and initiatives related to US foreign assistance advanced in Congress. See the Spotlight, below, for more information and analysis. Philanthropy group launch at the G7 Development Ministers Meeting: On April 29-30, the G7 Development Ministerial Meeting met in France. Their Ministerial Communiqué called for new approaches while reaffirming the role of Official Development Assistance (ODA), the empowerment of all women and girls and the full and equal enjoyment of all their human rights and fundamental freedoms as a key driver for development and economic growth, a focus on future generations, and investment in resources for sectors of human development, including nutrition, food systems, education and health. During the meeting, the Global Partnership for Education (article) and the Education for All Foundation (article) advocated for education financing. An official side event was convened by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Network of Foundations Working for Development (netFWD) and the Pact for People, Prosperity, and the Planet, to launch a new initiative, the Foundations 7 Engagement Group (F7). This is the first time philanthropic foundations have come together as a collective platform to engage with G7 discussions on financing for development. The F7 members issued a statement – “Philanthropy as a Strategic Partner in Financing for Development and a Renewed Development Paradigm” – calling for a renewed development paradigm grounded in trust-based and mutually-beneficial partnerships; strengthening transparency; stronger coordination between philanthropy, governments, and development banks; and collaboration with local actors to end aid dependency and support locally-led development. Trump Administration eliminating programs for contraception and family planning despite Congressional appropriations: NPR reported on April 29 that the Trump Administration has shut down foreign assistance programs for family planning, refusing to spend money appropriated for these purposes by Congress. NPR says, “The Guttmacher Institute — a nonprofit research organization that supports access to family planning — estimates U.S. funds gave over 47 million women and couples access to modern contraceptive care each year. That, in turn, prevented 17.1 million unintended pregnancies annually and saved 34,000 lives because women and girls did not die from complications during pregnancy or childbirth.” They note that, “As a result of the cuts rural clinics were shuttered, community health workers and nurse midwives fired and technical experts pulled from ministries of health,” and cite a recent report from The Women's Refugee Commission, “A Year of Harms,” that found that almost 95% of U.S. foreign aid for sexual reproductive health and family planning was cut in 2025. Children facing crisis levels of food insecurity in Lebanon and South Sudan: The latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classifications (IPC) for Lebanon and South Sudan, released April 28, raised alarm bells that both countries have seen dramatic increases in people projected to face crisis or worse levels of hunger (IPC Phase 3 and above). In Lebanon, food insecurity has been driven by conflict and displacement since the start of hostilities in March, and the IPC projects that 1.24 million people in the country will face high levels of acute food insecurity from April to August 2026, worse than previously predicted. Save the Children noted that this represents more than a quarter of the population, and that about 380,000 children are expected to face crisis‑level hunger or worse between April and August 2026. Plan International’s Programme Director for Lebanon, Alam Janbein, said that the crisis is being driven in part by shortfalls in humanitarian aid and has a disproportionate impact on girls: “For girls, the deterioration in food security has immediate and long-term consequences. When families are under pressure, girls are often the first to reduce their food intake, the first to leave school, and the most exposed to risks including exploitation, early marriage and other forms of gender-based violence.” In South Sudan, where nearly half the population faces crisis or worse levels of hunger (IPC Phase 3 and above), and an estimated 2.2 million children aged 6–59 months are projected to suffer from acute malnutrition. Mesfin Loha, Country Director for World Vision South Sudan, noted, “Ending hunger in South Sudan requires more than food aid. It demands peace, protection, and collaboration.” Reshma Azmi, Country Director of Plan International South Sudan, said, “This is has [sic] become one of the world’s worst hunger crises, and thousands of children and families are now at risk of starvation without immediate intervention. A deadly mix of brutal conflict, mass displacement and economic collapse is driving children into extreme hunger.” UNICEF noted that 73,300 people are facing Catastrophe (IPC Phase 5) — the most severe level of acute food insecurity – “a dramatic increase of 160 per cent from the last estimate.” The UN Food and Agriculture Organisation, the World Food Programme, and UNICEF are calling on the international community and governments to act immediately. James Akai, CARE South Sudan Country Director, said, “The IPC report confirms what we are witnessing. Hunger is accelerating the collapse of an already fragile health system, and it is women and children who are paying the highest price. Pregnant women are left with no access to medical care, no safe place to give birth, no support when complications arise. Meanwhile families are skipping meals and acute malnutrition is rising at alarming speed.” Ghana rejects “America First” health assistance agreement, joining other African countries: While the Trump Administration has promoted bilateral health agreements in place of previous foreign assistance provided by USAID and PEPFAR, several African countries have rejected the proposals due to concerns over concessions demanded by the US government. Ghana announced on April 28 that it would reject the US terms, particularly the sharing of sensitive health data, according to Reuters and The Telegraph. Zimbabwe had previously rejected the deal over similar data concerns, South Africa was denied assistance by the Trump Administration, and in early April, Kenya’s High Court paused a deal signed in December. Zambia had rejected US demands for access to critical minerals and had until April 30 to decide. On May 4, Zambia's government said that it opposed a U.S. attempt to tie health funding to access to critical minerals, and Zambia’s Foreign Minister said that the proposed health agreement must be decoupled from US demands to access critical minerals (Reuters, Associated Press). Health Policy Watch reported that Zambia and South Africa were already “struggling without aid” and facing increased HIV cases, citing a report from Physicians for Human Rights and reporting from the New York Times following the release of PEPFAR data last week (see The Weekly Pulse Issue 274 for more details on the impact of the HIV assistance cuts on children and adolescent girls). Germany to cut foreign assistance: In The Weekly Pulse Vol. 272, we reported that new OECD data released April 9 revealed the largest annual contraction of Official Development Assistance (ODA) on record, largely driven by US foreign assistance cuts. The global aid contraction left Germany as the world’s largest provider of ODA, but Devex reported on May 4 that the German government is eyeing aid cuts, but may replace grants with loans. Devex says, “Overall, just 1% of the government’s total spending currently goes to development, but a recent poll showed that the German public dramatically overestimates the figure, believing on average that 12% of the federal budget is spent on development cooperation. With the country’s far-right party, Alternative for Germany, polling higher than ever before — reaching a record 28% — and an increasing proportion of the population concerned about the country’s slow economic growth, development finance is taking a back seat to defense, in particular, which is receiving a 27.9% increase.” Conservative group pushing for restoration of foreign aid targets swing districts: The Financial Times reported on May 6 that a conservative group, The Campaign for America First International Assistance, has committed $8 million to advertising supporting the restoration of foreign assistance in swing key districts ahead of the US midterm elections. The group conducted polling in swing districts demonstrating that majorities support foreign assistance, particularly on global health, and its ads stress that foreign assistance helps the American economy. The group’s leader, a Republican strategist, said, “This is an issue where if a Republican talks about the work they’ve done, especially in swing districts, there’s a sizeable number of Democrats and even more independents who say they’re more likely to vote for them.” Spotlight Action on the Hill Further analysis of the FY27 foreign affairs bill: In last week’s issue (Vol. 274) we dove deep into the Fiscal Year 2027 (FY27) National Security, Department of State, and Related Programs (NSRP) bill, which was passed by the House Appropriations Committee on April 28. Several organizations have published further analyses of the proposed legislation, which still has to pass the full House; see:
Seventeen Democratic Senators rejected the Trump Administration's plan to use $19 billion to cover USAID dismantling costs: Devex reported on April 24 that the Trump Administration planned to use $19 billion in funds previously appropriated for other development and health objectives to cover USAID closeout costs and settlements tied to canceled awards. That day, a group of 17 Democratic Senators led by Senator Brian Schatz (D-HI) sent a letter objecting to the plan to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russell Vought, and OMB Deputy Director Eric Ueland. They demanded that the Trump Administration reverse course, comply with the law, and spend down the funding as Congress directed, saying, “The plan includes spending up to $3.2 billion in Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 development and global health funding on close-out costs, instead of lifesaving and other congressionally-directed programs, which constitutes an unnecessary and illegal impoundment of funds… [These] funds were signed into law by President Trump in March 2025 and expire at the end of this September. Notably, this includes $2 billion appropriated for health assistance, including $330 million for programs to combat HIV/AIDS, $250 million for malaria programs, $320 million for maternal and child health, and nearly $650 million for global health security, among other critical programs.” They continued, “It is unconscionable that the Administration would leave these funds unspent at a moment when newly released Department of State data show a sharp decline in HIV testing and prevention, raising the risk of new infections and undermining long-term epidemic control; when malaria is resurging globally and antimalarial drug resistance is spreading; and when millions of children are projected to die this year from preventable diseases.” House and Senate bills to nullify expanded Mexico City Policy introduced in Congress: New legislation – the “Protecting Human Rights and Public Health in Foreign Assistance Act” (H.R. 8582; House bill text; Senate bill text) – was introduced by Democratic Congressional leaders on April 29 and 30 in the US House of Representatives and Senate. The bills would nullify the Trump administration’s expansion of the Mexico City Policy, also known as the Global Gag Rule. (See The Weekly Pulse volumes 262, 263, and 267 for deep-dives into the policy, which dramatically expanded the previous policies to new issues including gender and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), applied prohibitions to all U.S. foreign assistance and broadened the pool of organizations subject to the restrictions.) View the House Foreign Affairs Committee Minority's, Congressional Equality Caucus's, Democratic Women’s Caucus’s, and Senate Foreign Relations Committee Ranking Member's press releases for more details on the bill co-sponsors and quotes from lawmakers and experts. The Women’s Refugee Commission expressed strong support for the legislation; Executive Director Sarah Costa said, “Women and girls around the world are already paying with their lives for the gutting of US aid for sexual and reproductive health, protection from violence, and women’s empowerment and inclusion. Clinics have closed, mothers have died in childbirth, and survivors of sexual and gender-based violence have nowhere to turn… The expansion of the global gag rule will only further endanger the lives and rights of women and girls around the world. We thank Senators Shaheen and Rosen and Representatives Meng, Frankel, DeGette, Jayapal, Jacobs, and Meeks for their leadership to stop this senseless expansion and fight for the dignity and wellbeing of women and girls. We urge Congress to swiftly pass this legislation.” See also the PAI Legislative Overview of the bill. Farm bill cemented cuts to SNAP benefits and transfers Food for Peace to the USDA: On April 30, the House of Representatives passed the Farm, Food and National Security Act of 2026 (H.R. 7567), commonly known as the Farm Bill, which funds the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits for children in the US and the Food for Peace international assistance program. Under the bill, Food for Peace would be permanently transferred from USAID to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and at least 50% of Food for Peace funding would be required to be used to purchase and transport U.S.-grown agricultural commodities (Devex, New York Times). The bill must now be considered by the Senate and signed by the President to become law.
Bipartisan group of Senators urged the State Department to restore global vaccine funding: On May 4, U.S. Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Susan Collins (R-ME), Chair of the Appropriations Committee, Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Appropriations Committee, Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Brian Schatz (D-HI) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) sent a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio urging the State Department to restore U.S. contributions to the global vaccine alliance GAVI. They said, “We question why the Department of State has not used $600 million appropriated in fiscal years 2025 and 2026 ($300 million each fiscal year) to replenish the U.S. Government’s pledge to the Vaccine Alliance (GAVI). GAVI plays a critical role in averting the spread of preventable diseases around the globe and helps protect public health in our country by stopping outbreaks before they reach our borders. Congressional support for GAVI endures because of its proven success as a public-private partnership, immunizing more than 1.1 billion children – and in turn preventing 20.6 million deaths – since its inception in 2000.” EVENTS
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