The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has recently come under scrutiny for reportedly squandering billions of dollars intended to fund disaster relief efforts in Haiti following the devastating 2010 earthquake that killed hundreds of thousands. Reports indicate that, of the billions that was allocated to the nation, over half of it went to companies in Washington, D.C.
Libs of TikTok reported on the news on X, writing, “USAID’s Haiti scandal is staggering. The U.S. sent $4.4B after the 2010 earthquake—yet less than 2% reached Haitians, while 56% lined the pockets of D.C. firms. The Red Cross claimed to shelter 130,000 people—but built just SIX homes. No transparency. No accountability. USAID and NGOs refuse to answer where the money went—while Haitians were left with nothing.”
The post was referring to an opinion piece published in the New York Post by Paul Vallas who cited his firsthand experience in observing the inefficiencies of USAID and other NGOs. Ultimately, Vallas concluded that it was in the interest of the American taxpayers for DOGE to perform a thorough audit of where our taxes are going.
“And I’ve seen how USAID, along with other NGOs, delivered on very few of their promises, failed to coordinate relief activities, and even skimmed money off the top,” Vallas wrote. “What happened in Haiti captures, at the very least, the incompetence — if not the outright corruption — of these international relief organizations. There is probably no more corrupt government agency than USAID.”
Vallas pointed out that since 2010, the United States has sent about $4.4 billion in foreign aid to Haiti. “At least $1.5 billion was disbursed for immediate humanitarian aid, while another $3 billion went to recovery, reconstruction and development,” he noted. The piece explained that another $2.13 billion went toward contracts and grants toward work in Haiti. However, Vallas said a notable $1.3 billion, nearly 60% of the funds, was sent to firms in D.C. “Little wonder USAID is so threatened by the sudden scrutiny,” he asserted.
The report has sparked commentary from conservatives on social media, questioning what else could be revealed about USAID. “Tip of the Iceberg, USAID has missions in over 100 countries, how many of these countries have Third Party Monitoring/Oversight over USAID Programs? Also shouldn’t Embassies be conducting some oversight? We all know in many counties Embassy Staff rarely leave their Offices!” one person wrote.
Another person commented, “Haiti’s post-earthquake relief effort is widely regarded as a case study of international aid failure. Billions were wasted, there was little oversight, and the effort had minimal benefits for actual Haitians. While corruption in Haiti’s own government played a role, U.S. agencies, NGOs, and contractors bear significant responsibility for mismanagement.”
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The popular account Stop Socialist Tyranny said, “Typical example of government waste and corruption, billions sent to help Haitians but most of it ends up in pockets of DC firms. This is what happens when you have no transparency or accountability, it’s a never-ending cycle of abuse of taxpayer dollars. Time for some real change, Trump’s administration would have handled this differently, with proper oversight and accountability, not just throwing money around.”
Watch Trump call out the troubling social security “fraud” below:
Featured image credit: Wikimedia commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Haiti_Earthquake_8.jpg#filelinks, Makenson Charles and Matiado Vilme/VOA from https://www.vozdeamerica.com/gallery/fuerte-terremoto-sacude-haiti-dejando-victimas-fatales-y-heridos with UploadWizard