Johns Hopkins University in the United States of America has announced plans to lay off over 2,000 employees worldwide following a drastic reduction in U.S. foreign aid under President Donald Trump’s administration.
In a statement released Thursday, the university said the decision was driven by the termination of more than $800 million in funding from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
“This is a difficult day for our entire community. The termination of more than $800 million in USAID funding is now forcing us to wind down critical work,” the statement read.
The Baltimore-based institution will eliminate at least 1,975 jobs in projects across 44 countries and 247 positions in the United States.
President Trump and his senior advisor, tech billionaire Elon Musk, have launched aggressive federal budget cuts, significantly impacting USAID’s support for foreign aid, research, and development initiatives.
Johns Hopkins, one of the hardest-hit institutions, had previously warned of the potential consequences. Earlier in March, university president Ronald Daniels noted that nearly half of the school’s funding came from federal sources.
Referencing a longstanding partnership with the U.S. government, Daniels warned that the cuts would severely affect global programs aimed at improving public health, hygiene, and medical research.
The funding cuts will impact Johns Hopkins’ medical school, its Bloomberg School of Public Health, and Jhpiego—a nonprofit health organization dedicated to improving global healthcare.
“Johns Hopkins is immensely proud of the work done by our colleagues in Jhpiego, the Bloomberg School of Public Health, and the School of Medicine to care for mothers and infants, fight disease, provide clean drinking water, and advance countless other critical, life-saving efforts around the world,” the university stated.
The institution receives roughly $1 billion annually from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and is currently engaged in 600 clinical trials. It is also among the plaintiffs challenging the funding cuts in federal court.
USAID, which funds humanitarian aid and emergency health programs in about 120 countries, is facing widespread restructuring. Trump’s executive order in January froze all foreign aid expenditures pending a full review.
Critics argue that the cuts will put millions of lives at risk, particularly in developing nations reliant on U.S. humanitarian assistance.
