Published by the Center for Global Development (CGD), the blog post Decoupling “Stop Work” Orders from “Stop Basic Care”: How New Aid Models Can Protect Countries from Unreliable External Financing is authored by Tom Drake, Anastassia Demeshko, Pete Baker, Javier Guzman, and Rachel Bonnifield. The article examines the consequences of abrupt foreign aid suspensions, particularly in global health, and advocates for a more resilient financing model that prioritises domestic investment in essential services. The authors argue that recipient countries must reduce their dependence on volatile external funding to ensure the continuity of critical healthcare programs.
The article highlights the far-reaching impact of the U.S. State Department’s recent stop-work order, which halted nearly all foreign aid spending and disrupted life-saving health programs worldwide. The authors emphasise that aid volatility has long been a systemic issue, influenced by shifting political priorities in donor countries. To address this challenge, CGD proposes a New Compact approach, in which domestic governments take the lead in financing core health services while external donors support supplementary initiatives. This model, they contend, would shield essential healthcare programs from geopolitical instability and create a more sustainable, locally driven framework for health financing.