Cambodian Journalists Alliance Association

U.S. Aid Freeze Forces Cambodian Government to Seek New Funding Partners Amid NGO Layoffs

A CMAC staff shows UXO discovered in a mine field. A photo post on CMAC Director-General Heng Ratana’s Facebook on January 31, 2025 during his announcement on a halt to their activities following USAID’s fund suspension.
A CMAC staff shows UXO discovered in a mine field. A photo post on CMAC Director-General Heng Ratana’s Facebook on January 31, 2025 during his announcement on a halt to their activities following USAID’s fund suspension.

Amid a disruption of key projects in Cambodia due to the U.S. aid freeze, the government is scrambling to secure new funding partners to keep afloat initiatives which have stalled. With programs grinding to a halt, NGO staff are also facing job losses and uncertainty—prompting officials to urge Washington to reconsider its decision.

“If any project is affected, the government will strive to find solutions for each project and remain flexible, including looking for alternative funding sources,” government spokesperson Pen Bona said. “We have many ways to address these challenges without causing any impact to policies or disrupting Cambodia’s development progress.” 

He told CamboJA News that several projects, including those in agriculture, health, and mining, are affected by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) suspension, as they rely on other USAID implementers. However, he emphasized that these disruptions will not halt progress in crucial sectors.

“While projects receiving USAID support will face challenges, they will not affect the government or development policies,” he said. “Our government continues to function normally.”

On January 20, U.S President Donald Trump issued an executive order halting U.S. foreign aid programs for 90 days to assess their alignment with his administration’s policy objectives. As part of the freeze, USAID’s website mysteriously went offline on February 1, causing thousands of their staff to suddenly face furloughs, layoffs, and program suspensions. 

The following Monday, tech tycoon Elon Musk, who now heads the U.S Department of Government Efficiency, charged at the USAID, branding it a “criminal organization”. Trump echoed similar sentiments, saying that it was “run by radical lunatics”. Musk confirmed that Trump endorsed the shutdown of USAID.

The agency’s main office in Washington was unexpectedly closed, with employees receiving late-night emails instructing them not to report to work.

In Cambodia, the USAID contributed over $3 billion to various sectors over the past three decades, ranging from health and agriculture to governance and education. 

During her October 2024 visit to Cambodia, USAID Administrator Samantha Power announced over $55 million in aid, including $17 million for healthcare, $29 million for agriculture, and $6 million for civil society, media and labor. An additional $3 million from the U.S. Department of Labor aimed to support disability inclusion. 

Salary Concerns Amid the Suspension

Over 1,000 Cambodian deminers face unemployment following the aid suspension, according to Ly Thuch, First Vice President of the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority.

Heng Ratana, Director-General of the Cambodian Mine Action Centre (CMAC), shared on Facebook that CMAC had to halt eight demining operations in Rattanakiri, Mondulkiri, Steung Treng, Kratie, Tbong Khum, Kampong Cham, Prey Veng and Svay Rieng. These projects, which were funded by the U.S and supported via development partners in cooperation with CMAC, have now ceased.

“CMAC’s management team and development partners are actively working with the WRA [Weapons Removal and Abatement] project manager at the Department of State to secure continued assistance for this vital humanitarian mission,” Ratana said.

The CMAC project received grant assistance totaling $6.5 million from development partners through the WRA for 45 months from March 2022 to November 2025, which supported approximately 200 technical UXO experts.

CMAC is in discussions with USAID to clarify whether the suspension will impact the payment of salaries. CMAC has not yet requested government funds to cover the salaries, as there is still no clear direction from USAID.

“Normally, we wait a certain period for decisions. We cannot keep our experts waiting indefinitely,” Ratana added.

Keo Sarath, a CMAC Demining Unit 5 staff member who has worked with the organization since 2009, expressed his frustration over the sudden suspension. He said it has left many deminers without work, and some are facing financial difficulties after taking out personal loans to build homes, for instance.

“We are facing difficulties because some people borrowed money from the bank to build their houses,” he said. “It doesn’t feel good being suspended because we have no work to do […] it happened suddenly.”

He urged the U.S to reconsider its decision, stressing that funding is crucial in clearing landmines and protecting the population from danger.

NGOs and CSOs Struggling with the Freeze

The suspension is also affecting NGOs and CSOs in Cambodia. Samrith Tona, Executive Director of Women’s Community Voices (WCV), said his organization has been forced to suspend four staff members and two interns due to the funding halt. 

WCV works to strengthen media capacity, especially among women, and trains youth to report on community issues like climate change, land rights and deforestation.

“The loss of funding means we can’t produce important stories that benefit society,” Tona said. “The media, especially women journalists, are already down in numbers, and when organizations like ours lose resources, it is a step back in the media landscape.”

Tona further stressed that the lack of media coverage on issues like land violations and community forest abuses perpetuate injustice. 

“The media plays an essential role in amplifying the voices of vulnerable people, but without funding, their issues risk being ignored,” he said, adding the USAID played an important role in supporting the media in Cambodia. 

In an unprecedented move, U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration announced late Friday that it would be removing four media organizations, including the New York Times, from their dedicated office space in the Pentagon, with the intention of “making room for other groups”.

Ny Sokha, president of Cambodian rights group ADHOC, told CamboJA News that his organization relies heavily on USAID support, which accounts for over 70 percent of ADHOC’s activities. 

The funding cut has led to the suspension or reduction of many programs, including those aimed at helping victims of human rights violations, land disputes and sex trafficking.

“In the past, USAID funding enabled us to provide legal assistance to the poor, offer social support to activists unjustly arrested, and provide essential services to those fighting for their rights,” Sokha explained.

Despite these setbacks, ADHOC remains hopeful that the U.S. government under its current leadership will reconsider its decision on foreign aid, especially for countries struggling with human rights and democracy challenges.

“We urge the U.S. to continue funding civil society organizations so that we can help restore human rights and democracy in countries like Cambodia,” Sokha said.

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