USAID to place all direct hire personnel on administrative leave globally

The US Agency for International Development (USAID) announced Tuesday that all direct hire personnel will be placed on administrative leave globally starting noon Friday.

According to a statement on the agency's website, exceptions will be made for designated personnel responsible for mission-critical functions, core leadership, and specially designated programs.

USAID's website went offline on Saturday, and its official X and Instagram accounts were taken down.

Essential staff expected to continue working will be notified by the agency's leadership by Thursday, Feb. 6 at 3.00 p.m. local time (2000GMT), the agency said in the statement on its website, which was brought back online.

For USAID personnel currently posted outside the US, the agency, in coordination with missions and the State Department, is preparing a plan to arrange and fund return travel to the US within 30 days. Additionally, contracts for Personal Services Contractors (PSC) and Institutional Support Contractors (ISC) that are not deemed essential will be terminated, it added.

USAID said case-by-case exceptions and return travel extensions may be granted based on personal or family hardship, mobility or safety concerns, or other reasons, including the timing of dependents' school terms, medical needs and pregnancy.

Approximately two-thirds of USAID's 10,000 employees are stationed abroad across more than 60 country and regional missions, according to a January 2025 Congressional Research Service report.

The announcement comes amid broader efforts by the Trump administration to dismantle USAID, including a freeze on most foreign aid and discussions on integrating the agency into the State Department. The changes have raised concerns among humanitarian organizations regarding the future of US global aid programs.

The latest actions against USAID follow an executive order issued by President Donald Trump last month halting all foreign aid for 90 days. Trump has criticized USAID, calling its staff "radical left lunatics."

In fiscal year 2023, USAID managed over $40 billion in federal spending—less than 1% of the total federal budget—funding aid projects in around 130 countries, including Ukraine, Ethiopia, Jordan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Somalia, South Sudan and Syria.