WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has dismissed Paul Martin, the inspector general of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the largest American aid provider for impoverished nations, including Afghanistan, according to a USAID official who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity.
Martin was removed on Tuesday, February 11, after his office criticized the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle USAID, the report said.
He was informed of his dismissal via an email from Trent Morse, deputy director of the White House Office of Presidential Personnel.
Martin had served as USAID’s inspector general since December 2023, a position requiring Senate confirmation.
The firing came a day after the Office of the Inspector General released a report stating that Trump’s move to dismantle USAID had crippled the agency’s ability to oversee $8.2 billion in unspent aid funds.
The report warned that staff reductions and work stoppage orders had severely hindered efforts to ensure taxpayer money reached its intended recipients.
USAID is a major pillar of U.S. foreign assistance, providing an average of $430 million annually to some of the world’s poorest nations, including Afghanistan. Over the past 24 years, the agency has delivered more than $109 billion in aid to Afghanistan alone.
Established by President John F. Kennedy at the height of the Cold War to counter Soviet influence, USAID now finds itself at the center of U.S.-China geopolitical competition, as Beijing expands its Belt and Road Initiative to strengthen its global presence through foreign aid.
