{"id":848,"date":"2026-07-27T22:14:34","date_gmt":"2026-07-27T22:14:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/officemovingamerica.com\/?p=848"},"modified":"2026-07-27T22:14:34","modified_gmt":"2026-07-27T22:14:34","slug":"watchdog-finds-staffing-guidance-gaps-in-transfer-of-usaid-programs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/officemovingamerica.com\/?p=848","title":{"rendered":"Watchdog Finds Staffing, Guidance Gaps in Transfer of USAID Programs"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<div>\n<p>By Simon Lewis<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>WASHINGTON, July 27 (Reuters) &#8211; The U.S. State \u2060Department&#8217;s \u2060hurried takeover of aid programs from \u2060the shuttered U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) last year was hampered \u200bby staffing shortages, IT issues and delayed guidance, an internal watchdog said in a report released on \u200cMonday.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/officemovingamerica.com\/?p=846\">Today\u2019s News: Trump Levies New Tariffs, Weighs \u2018Massive\u2019 Iran Attack<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>President Donald Trump ordered the closure \u200cof USAID shortly after resuming office in January 2025. Well over 10,000 people were fired \u2060and thousands \u2060of programs canceled, throwing into turmoil U.S.-funded aid operations on which millions \u200bof the world\u2019s poorest people depended.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>The State Department&#8217;s Office of Inspector General said in its report that aid projects carrying $51.5 billion in obligated funds were transferred just as the department was undergoing its own reorganization. \u200bThe so-called &#8220;Green List&#8221; of awards that survived the shutdown of USAID comprised 1,504 aid awards, \u2060including \u2060projects in conflict zones like \u2060Ukraine and \u200bIsrael and the Palestinian territories, it said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>&#8220;The transition happened extremely fast, with evolving guidance,\u201d the \u200bOffice of Inspector General cited \u2060officials from one bureau as saying. The report found that the department had not implemented the inspector general&#8217;s earlier recommendations aimed at smoothing the transition.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>The State Department did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. The department&#8217;s top office for management told the authors that implementation \u2060of the watchdog&#8217;s recommendations was underway, the report said.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/officemovingamerica.com\/?p=844\">Former JPMorgan Chase Banker Expands Lurid Sexual Harassment, Racism Lawsuit<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>About a third of the State \u2060Department offices that had to take on USAID awards had no prior experience managing foreign assistance projects, staff told the watchdog. The department hired 838 new positions to administer the awards, but this was far fewer than bureaus requested, it found.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>\n<p>Guidance on how to update the terms of aid awards was not fully in place until December, and an artificial intelligence-driven data management tool introduced to help with the transition was beset by data problems, the report said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>The continent with largest number of different \u2060awards transferred to the State Department was Africa, with 639 awards carrying $17 billion of obligated funds.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>The Bureau of African Affairs, which took on a majority of those awards, requested 732 new positions to administer the awards, but ultimately only hired 232 people, \u200bthe vast majority of them locally employed staff based out of U.S. \u200bmissions.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/officemovingamerica.com\/?p=842\">Trump May Need to Allow Chinese Minerals as US Industry Struggles to Meet 2027 Deadline<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>\n<p>(Reporting by Simon Lewis; Editing by Aurora Ellis)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p><b>Copyright 2026 Thomson Reuters<\/b>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>US News is a recognized leader in college, grad school, hospital, mutual fund, and car rankings. 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