Irish aid agency Goal has said more than 900 of its staff, including 28 people in Ireland, are at risk of losing their jobs due to cuts to international aid funding.
The cuts have put almost 30% of the aid agency’s staff at risk of redundancy along with a “consequential cut” to the aid agency’s work around the world.
“These cuts come at a time when there are more than 120 million people displaced worldwide, and humanitarian needs are at their highest levels in decades,” Goal said in a statement.
The charity currently operates in 14 countries around the world, and it said it “directly supported” more than 11 million people last year.
“In addition to the reduction in US funding, there have also been Governments across Europe announcing cutbacks; the Netherlands has slashed 30% of its aid budget, redirecting funds to projects that ‘directly contribute to Dutch interests’.
“Belgium has cut aid by 25%, while France has reduced its budget by 37%. More recently, the UK made a dramatic move, cutting foreign aid by 40%. The unprecedented scale of these cuts is placing an indescribable toll on the entire humanitarian systems and millions of lives are on the brink,” it said.
Goal added: “As an organisation deeply committed to helping improve the state of our world, we recognise the profound impact that programme closures and staff reductions will have on individual lives and communities, but it’s a sad reality that the entire global humanitarian system is now in crisis and the scale of the cuts globally are not yet visible.”
The aid agency said it was in the process of assessing the full impact of the cuts on its global operations.
However, it has already informed staff in Africa, Middle East, Latin America, and the Caribbean that their jobs are at risk.
Goal said that cuts will have “profound implications” on individual lives and communities.
“In Ethiopia, we have many programmes focused on providing critical, life-saving care for children suffering from moderate and severe acute malnutrition.
“Because of the cuts, we are already receiving reports of children under five years of age participating in therapeutic feeding programmes dying due to interruptions and suspensions of the feeding programme.”
Goal said that it was “proud and grateful to acknowledge” that the Irish Government has continued to support people living in extreme poverty by maintaining its humanitarian funding to Goal and other aid agencies.
“Thanks to the continued support of Irish Aid and the generosity of the Irish public, Goal will continue to do all we can with the resources we have, to deliver critical, life-saving programmes.”
