The US State Department has announced plans to set up 12 regional hubs to coordinate disaster and emergency humanitarian responses. This move comes as the department consolidates functions previously handled by the now-dismantled US Agency for International Development (USAID).
The new Bureau of Disaster and Humanitarian Response will be based in Washington with around 200 staff members. However, on-the-ground operations will be managed from regional hubs located in Latin America, Asia, Europe, and Africa.
The Trump administration has faced criticism from aid organisations for closing USAID, which had been the primary platform for foreign assistance for decades. The new bureau will focus solely on disaster and emergency aid, operating under a larger office overseeing all foreign assistance.
The administration has significantly reduced foreign aid spending, particularly for climate change and social justice programmes. However, it announced a $2 billion contribution to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs late last year, directing assistance to specific groups in need.
The regional hubs will be located in Miami; Bogota, Colombia; Guatemala City; Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic; Kyiv, Ukraine; Amman, Jordan; Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; Nairobi, Kenya; Dakar, Senegal; Bangkok; Dhaka, Bangladesh; and Manila, Philippines.
