Rachel Wolff (daughter of our former pastor, Rev. Steve and Betty Luttio) works for CARE – a large humanitarian NPO that has been part of USAID since 1949. The recent January order to stop all US government programs for health, poverty reduction, and life-saving assistance around the world has impacted hundreds of millions of people. The letter below, sent out to supporters of CARE by the president and CEO of the organization, explains that impact….and describes their continuing commitment and concerns.
We include it here, both as a form of sharing important information, as well as to function as a call to prayer. Please pray for the many who are impacted, and especially for Rachel and her family as it appears that due to the end of funding, they will need to return to the US by the end of March.
Dear CARE Supporter,
I am reaching out because I want you to hear directly from me about how international aid cuts are affecting CARE.
We are facing historically tough and complex challenges which I want to share along with the choices we are making to ensure CARE’s continuity and resilience. We want to invite you into the story and into the work ahead.
The January order to stop all US government programs for health, poverty reduction, and life-saving assistance, has impacted hundreds of millions of people around the world. It also means that humanitarian organizations, including CARE, and beloved faith-based organizations, are facing anguishing choices.
Humanitarian aid is not abstract, it is life-saving help for women, children, and families who need food, medicine, and shelter. This aid depends upon thousands of humanitarians and an infrastructure to deliver that assistance.
The Reality for CARE:
CARE has worked in partnership with 14 US Presidential administrations, starting with President Truman, to deliver global relief and support in places of conflict, natural disaster and poverty. We receive approximately 40% of our funding from the US government.
Every year, we match this critical support with funding from 250,000 individual supporters like you and institutions ranging from family foundations to Fortune 1000 companies.
With the Stop Work Orders, we were forced to pause 71 programs serving 7 million people in 31 countries virtually overnight. We received waivers for approximately a dozen programs to maintain life-saving assistance. But this past week the State Department announced that 10,000 assistance and humanitarian programs were being cancelled, which represents an estimated 90% cut of all US government international assistance.
What This Means for CARE:
These terminations will have immediate and devastating human consequences for CARE participants and partners. In Ethiopia, 6.6M people who depend on humanitarian aid will lose access to food. In Honduras, more than 470,000 vulnerable people may lose health services. In Sudan, we will have to close 38 healthcare centers serving more than 500,000 people. And this is only a tiny fraction of the impact of these cuts.
Such massive numbers often mask the people behind them, so let me share a couple of stories with you. Over the last few days, I have been thinking about Radhika, a 12-year-old girl in Nepal who, in her words, saw the “end of her dreams” when her CARE run school was shut down.
And the story of Hanus’s three-year-old son in Ethiopia whose critical malnutrition treatment abruptly ended, leaving her to watch helplessly as he deteriorates. “I will lose my child if this cessation of aid continues,” she said. And there are so many more heartbreaking stories like these.
CARE’s Response:
As a result of the cuts, CARE has had to make tough organizational decisions. We have had to lay off or furlough hundreds of staff in the US and around the world. And with the program terminations we just received, we will be forced to release additional global team members.
We have reached out to generous supporters who have helped us create a Triage Fund to keep some essential lifesaving programming going. Thanks to that support, we have been able to restart malnutrition treatment for babies in Sudan, distribute food in Zimbabwe that was in danger of rotting, and deliver 2.7 million essential drugs to clinics in Somalia before they went bad.
CARE’s Continued Commitment:
We have a proud history to carry us through this moment. With the invention of the CARE package after World War II, we have participated in 80 years of American generosity. Today, as one of the largest networks of humanitarians in the world with operations in more than 100 countries, we are committed to navigating the complexity ahead and living up to this history. We are re-dedicating ourselves to:
· Impact: We commit to delivering the highest return on investment in terms of lives changed and lives saved.
· Efficiency: CARE spends 90% of its funds directly on programs. We maintain an unmatched level of efficiency in the dollars invested, whether from the US government or our individual supporters.
· Locally Led Solutions: 96% of our team-members come from the communities they are serving, and we build upon trusted long-term relationships with local businesses and governments.
· Transparency and Accountability: CARE’s investment in due diligence, partner vetting, and performance management is a non-negotiable in building trustworthy, operationally sound programs that align with our values wherever we work. We measure and transparently report our impact each year.
· Bi-Partisan Partnership with the US Government: CARE has long-standing partnerships with leadership on both sides of the aisle. We will continue to work to sustain and deliver bi-partisan US government humanitarian investments to make the people of the US and the world safer, more secure, and prosperous.
CARE’s work has lifted millions out of poverty. But there are still enormous needs, and we are seeing increases in the number of people impacted by conflict, natural disasters, and poverty. Today, there are more than 300 million people who need humanitarian assistance in the world and almost 700 million face the daily agonies of extreme poverty.
If the US government does step back, CARE will step forward. No single supporter or donor can replace governmental investments, but I am confident we will see a surge of civic mobilization in dollars, volunteerism, and voices to support American generosity in the world.
It is important to remember that more than half of our funding comes from non-US government sources. This is why, now more than ever, your support and solidarity are needed. As journalist Nick Kristoff recently said at a CARE event, while it may feel like a drop in the bucket, that is how we fill buckets!
I see examples of this all around us – donors who have increased their giving by 10 times or the CARE staff members who have lost their jobs but want to volunteer their time to continue to extend care around the world. And I am finding solace in notes of inspiration and solidarity from CARE colleagues and participants all around the world. One of our team members in Ethiopia shared a beautiful Amharic word that uniquely speaks to this moment, Birchi – which means “Be strong, you’ve got this.”
With your continued support, CARE will stand in the breach for those who are most vulnerable in the world, we will be with them, and we will be strong together.
With gratitude,
Michelle Nunn
President and CEO, CARE
Japanese Congregational Church 