Summary
Nearly 500 tonnes of special food meant for malnourished children in Afghanistan and Pakistan will be destroyed after it expired in a warehouse due to the closure of the United States' aid agency. High-energy biscuits, valued at $793,000, are set to be incinerated, while efforts to redirect some aid resulted in 622 tonnes being sent to other countries.
Key Facts
- About 500 tonnes of high-energy biscuits expired in a Dubai warehouse.
- The biscuits were originally meant to help 27,000 children in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
- These biscuits will be incinerated or sent to landfills in the UAE.
- The cost of destroying these biscuits will be around $100,000 for the US government.
- USAID, the USA’s international aid agency, was shut down on July 1, leading to this situation.
- 622 tonnes of biscuits were diverted to Syria, Bangladesh, and Myanmar.
- The US is the largest donor of humanitarian aid globally, providing 38% of the UN's contributions.
- The Trump administration planned to close USAID, arguing for other countries to share more of the foreign aid burden.
