The UK-based charity Save the Children revealed on Wednesday that at least eight people, including five children, died from cholera in South Sudan while attempting a three-hour walk to seek medical treatment.
The deaths, which occurred last month, have been directly linked to recent US foreign aid cuts that forced the closure of local health services.
These fatalities are among the first publicly attributed to aid reductions enacted by US President Donald Trump following his return to office on January 20.
The Trump administration previously announced a freeze on aid to review whether grants aligned with its “America First” policy agenda.
Experts have warned that these cuts — including the cancellation of more than 90% of USAID’s contracts — could lead to millions of preventable deaths in the coming years from malnutrition, AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, and other diseases.
As of the time of filing this report, the US State Department has not issued a comment on the situation.
Save the Children stated that until earlier this year, it supported 27 health facilities in Jonglei State in eastern South Sudan. Due to the aid cuts, seven of these facilities were forced to shut down entirely, while 20 were partially closed. US-funded transportation services to hospitals in the region have also ceased due to lack of funds.
As a result, the eight cholera victims had no choice but to walk in extreme heat—approaching 40°C (104°F)—to reach the nearest functional health facility.
Christopher Nyamandi, Save the Children’s Country Director in South Sudan, confirmed that three of the children who died were under the age of five.
“There should be global moral outrage that the decisions made by powerful people in other countries have led to child deaths in just a matter of weeks,” Nyamandi said.