Since President Donald Trump's January 25 executive orders slashing US global aid commitments, the world of development assistance has been thrown into turmoil. It has become a matter of life and death for those on the ground. Take, for example, a leading wellness hub in Uganda, where LGBTQ+ patients (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and other sexual and gender minorities) depend on US-funded HIV programmes—now left in limbo as funding freezes take hold. In countries where abortion remains criminalised, US-backed maternal health services have long provided a critical safety net—one that could vanish overnight. The fallout stretches far beyond Africa; humanitarian programmes in Yemen, Afghanistan and Gaza are now at risk of collapse as donor commitments dry up
The Writing Was On The Wall
But to be fair, the shift in global aid flows did not begin with Trump—his orders have only accelerated an existing trend. Even before the White House intervention, the writing was on the wall. Major Western donor countries were already wrestling with donor fatigue, domestic cost-of-living crisis and rising political opposition to foreign aid. The once-unquestioned generosity of wealthy nations is now being scrutinised, debated, restructured—and, in many cases, reversed. In countries where the far-right has gained power or influence, aid budgets are among the first to be slashed or allocated for domestic priorities.
Nilima Gulrajani, Principal Research Fellow at ODI Global, notes in her latest report that eight wealthy nations announced over $17 billion in cuts to official development assistance (ODA) in 2024, with three more signalling further reductions over the next five years. These figures do not yet include the cuts linked to Trump's orders, such as the US withdrawal from the World Health Organization (WHO) and a 90-day pause on US aid spending.
Has The World Reached 'Peak Aid'?
According to her, signs that the world may have reached “peak aid” are becoming harder to ignore. The Netherlands plans to cut €8bn from its aid budget over four years, while funding for civil society organisations will shrink by €1bn between 2025 and 2030, with policymakers looking to shift responsibility onto the private sector. Meanwhile, active conflicts are reshaping aid priorities. Ukraine has now become the largest-ever recipient of international assistance as Western governments divert funds towards military and humanitarian support. Moreover, in a country like Britain, 28% of aid spending now goes towards hosting refugees, making the UK the biggest recipient of its own aid budget. The pattern is spreading—at least seven donor nations now allocate a quarter of their aid domestically, covering costs for transport, shelter and training for refugees.
At the same time, economic pressures are mounting. Citizens are increasingly questioning helping foreign countries while their own nations are faced with acute economic hardships. They want accountability for their tax dollars spent on these companies. Only nine donor nations recorded budget surpluses last year, while two-thirds of EU countries are imposing spending cuts. With rising deficits, soaring living costs and escalating climate crises, foreign aid is increasingly seen as an optional luxury.
It seems like the era of generous, unquestioned aid flows from the West may well be coming to an end. What replaces it remains uncertain—but for those who rely on it, the stakes could not be higher. Global aid experts say we are sliding towards a post-aid world, where self-interest replaces solidarity.
Blurring Lines
A post-aid world, if at all it materialises, does not imply the end of development assistance by wealthy countries. It points to a shift towards new trends of global engagement. For some time now, the lines between ‘developed' and ‘developing' countries have been getting increasingly blurred, and the donor-recipient model of aid as charity is increasingly being rejected, as the argument goes that the traditional rationale for aid has reached its limits. As new donors emerge, such as China, the UAE and India, they provide direct aid under bilateral agreements.
No Strings Attached
Unlike Western donors, India does not classify its assistance as “aid” but as “development cooperation” based on mutual benefit, shared growth and economic sustainability. The beauty of Indian aid is that unlike Western donors who often attach political or economic conditions to aid, its development assistance is demand-driven, respecting the sovereignty of recipient countries. India engages in collaborative efforts between developing countries, primarily in the Global South, to promote economic growth, technical assistance and development through mutual exchange rather than relying on traditional Western aid. Officials call it South-South Cooperation. India has thus emerged as a key partner rather than a donor, focusing on capacity-building, infrastructure and trade partnerships.
Under the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) programme, it provides training in IT, healthcare, governance and entrepreneurship to thousands of professionals in Africa, Asia and Latin America. India's Pan-African e-Network offers telemedicine and tele-education services to African nations using Indian expertise. India's lines of credit programmes finance major projects, such as railways, roads and power plants across Africa, Latin America and Asia. Moreover, India has extended billions in concessional loans, particularly in Africa, the Caribbean and Pacific Island nations. Its supplies of vaccines, medical aid and emergency relief to countries like Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh and the Maldives were highly effective. During COVID-19, India's Vaccine Maitri initiative provided millions of vaccine doses to developing nations when the Western nations were hoarding them for the future needs of their own people.
China's Aid Diplomacy
China with its deep pocket has no doubt emerged as a leading donor in the Global South. But its foreign aid strategy is believed to be deeply intertwined with its geopolitical ambitions, economic expansion and the quest for global influence. Unlike Western donors, who often tie aid to governance reforms or human rights conditions, China's approach is pragmatic, infrastructure-driven and largely unconditional. Through its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), Beijing has poured billions into roads, ports and energy projects, particularly in Africa, Latin America and Asia. While this investment has fuelled rapid development in many recipient countries, it has also led to accusations of debt-trap diplomacy, where struggling nations, such as Sri Lanka and Zambia, have been forced to cede strategic assets or renegotiate loans on Beijing's terms. Unlike India's South-South Cooperation model, which focuses on capacity-building and local ownership, China's aid is state-led, top-down, and often benefits Chinese companies and workers as much as, if not more than, the recipient countries.
But despite all the criticisms, China's aid model remains highly attractive to many governments in the Global South. Unlike Western aid, which is slow-moving and entangled in bureaucratic conditions, Chinese financing is fast, large-scale and largely free of political interference. Beijing also fills gaps that traditional donors often neglect, such as large-scale infrastructure financing and high-risk investment projects.
The Generous UAE
The UAE has also emerged as a leading country in dispersing aid to needy countries. Its foreign aid strategy is driven by a mix of humanitarianism, geopolitics and economic diplomacy, making it one of the world's most generous donors relative to its GDP. Unlike Western donors, the UAE prioritises regional stability and strategic economic partnerships, focusing heavily on the Middle East, Africa and South Asia. Its aid is often highly flexible, ranging from emergency humanitarian relief in conflict zones like Yemen and Gaza to long-term infrastructure and development funding in Africa and South Asia. Its model of development assistance is evolving from traditional charity to strategic statecraft.
A More Equitable World?
There are other players, like Saudi Arabia and Qatar. The rise of these new donors has forced Western countries to rethink their approach, moving beyond traditional aid conditionalities and bureaucratic models. In response, they are exploring more flexible financing mechanisms, increasing private sector involvement and contemplating offering greater tax incentives to encourage philanthropic giving from wealthy individuals. At the same time, they are recognising the need to make aid more recipient-driven, adapting to local priorities rather than imposing externally designed programmes. Yet, whatever adjustments they make, the reality is that aid from the Global South—whether through China's infrastructure-driven model, India's South-South cooperation, or Gulf states' strategic giving—is already reshaping the global aid architecture, shifting power and decision-making away from the long-dominant Western framework. And that is not such a bad thing for recipient countries.
(Syed Zubair Ahmed is a London-based senior Indian journalist with three decades of experience with the Western media)
Disclaimer: These are the personal opinions of the author
