Trump Administration Cuts Jeopardize Global Disaster Warning Systems and Famine Forecasts

The Trump administration’s sweeping cuts to the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) have critically undermined global early warning systems for natural disasters and famine, jeopardizing humanitarian efforts worldwide. By slashing funding and disrupting data sharing, essential programs that forecast floods, hurricanes, and food insecurity have been stalled or severely limited, threatening timely interventions that save lives.

One of the most affected programs is the Famine Early Warning System Network (FEWS NET), established after the devastating 1980s famines in sub-Saharan Africa. FEWS NET integrates satellite, weather, agricultural, and market data to predict food shortages and guide aid delivery before crises escalate. However, after the Trump administration froze foreign aid funding and cut more than 80% of USAID programs, FEWS NET’s operations were halted, staff furloughed, and data dissemination platforms taken offline.

This disruption means policymakers and aid organizations are forced to rely on outdated or incomplete information, increasing the risk of misallocating resources and delaying critical food aid. The loss of FEWS NET’s public data warehouse also restricts access to decades of famine forecasting data, hampering local analyses and independent research that inform targeted interventions.

Similarly, the Flash Flood Guidance System (FFGS), which provides rapid warnings for flash floods in over 70 countries, has faced funding cuts that halted its planned expansion and limited maintenance support. Flash floods require high-resolution, low-latency rainfall data to provide warnings within a 6 to 12-hour window, and without sustained investment, these systems risk failure, especially in vulnerable regions like parts of Africa and the Pacific Islands.

The termination of the Regional Disaster Assistance Program (RDAP), which supports hurricane preparedness drills and community readiness in Latin America and the Caribbean, further compounds risks as hurricane seasons approach. These early warning and preparedness programs have historically saved tens of thousands of lives and mitigated economic losses, underscoring the high cost of their disruption.

Beyond humanitarian concerns, early warning systems serve strategic interests by preventing regional destabilization, conflict, and migration pressures that can affect the United States directly. Experts emphasize that investing in disaster data infrastructure is not only a moral imperative but also a cost-effective strategy to reduce long-term crises and their global repercussions.

The data purge and funding cuts under the Trump administration represent an unprecedented gap in the continuity of disaster and famine forecasting in the last four decades. Restoring and modernizing these systems is critical to ensuring that governments, aid organizations, and vulnerable communities can anticipate and respond effectively to climate-driven disasters and food insecurity in an increasingly volatile world.