LISTEN: Weaponising aid — the cruel ways of #Trump2025

Several HIV treatment clinics in Cape Town, Joburg and the Eastern Cape, funded by the US government, temporarily closed down after receiving stop-work orders from the new Trump administration

US President Donald Trump holds a document at the White House in Washington, DC, the US, January 20 2025. Picture: REUTERS/CARLOS BARRIA
US President Donald Trump holds a document at the White House in Washington, DC, the US, January 20 2025. Picture: REUTERS/CARLOS BARRIA
  • Several HIV treatment clinics in Cape Town, Johannesburg and the Eastern Cape, funded by the US government, temporarily closed down recently after receiving stop-work orders from the new Trump administration.
  • Waivers have since been announced for projects handing out lifesaving medicines, but the waivers don’t contain lists of drugs that qualify, so everyone is confused as to whether their projects qualify for waivers.
  • And, Mitchell Warren, head of the New York-based advocacy organisation Avac, tells Mia Malan, waivers won’t fix the trust that’s been broken down. 
  • Projects, even if they qualified for waivers, will now be reassessed to see if they align with the Trump administration’s ideologies, which include condemning abortions and discriminating against transgender people.   

This story was produced by the Bhekisisa Centre for Health Journalism. Sign up for the newsletter.

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