On January 20, U.S. President Donald Trump ordered the suspension of international aid from USAID (the U.S. Agency for International Development) for 90 days, including those destined for Colombia, under the prioritization of the U.S. government’s own interests over investment in other countries. Thus, projects in key areas of intervention in the country, such as humanitarian assistance, migration assistance, implementation of the Peace Agreement, programs focused on climate change, education and health campaigns, among others, lack the necessary resources for their execution due to the uncertainty generated by the decisions taken.
International cooperation has played a fundamental role in financing the country’s development, which has made it possible to assist projects in areas of the national territory where the presence of the State is limited. According to figures from Colombia’s Presidential Agency for International Cooperation (APC), in 2024, resources of US$1.074 billion were mobilized to the country. These resources come from bilateral sources (US$890.2 million), highlighting the role of partners such as the United States, Germany and the European Union. In the case of multilateral sources (US$146.4 million), International Funds and United Nations Agencies stand out; and private sources (US$37.2 million).
Colombia has been one of the main beneficiaries of U.S. cooperation. Resources mobilized by the United States to the country in 2024 amounted to US$532 million, corresponding to 59.7% of total contributions by bilateral partners in the period. The United States was followed by Germany and the European Union, with shares of 8.7% and 7.6%, respectively. Of this figure, USAID contributed US$358.4 million for project financing (Figure 1) and by 2025 the amount approved was around US$413.2 million.
The temporary closure of USAID impacts various social and humanitarian organizations, private companies and government agencies around the world. Colombia, in particular, is one of the most affected, as a wide variety of national programs depend on these international resources. Moreover, considering the recent tensions between the governments of Colombia and the United States, which produced the worst trade crisis between the two nations in the recent past, the country stands to lose the support of one of its main allies not only in terms of international trade, but also in terms of assistance.
