WASHINGTON — Federal officials announced Friday they will establish 12 regional disaster response centers across the globe as part of a restructured approach to international humanitarian assistance.
The State Department’s newly created Bureau of Disaster and Humanitarian Response will operate from Washington headquarters with approximately 200 employees, according to Friday’s announcement. However, field operations will be managed through the dozen regional centers positioned throughout Latin America, Asia, Europe and Africa.
Relief organizations have widely condemned the Trump administration’s decision to eliminate USAID, the federal agency that served as America’s primary foreign aid platform for many years. The replacement bureau will focus exclusively on disaster relief and emergency assistance as a component of a broader foreign aid oversight office.
Foreign assistance funding has faced severe reductions under the current administration, especially programs addressing climate change and social justice initiatives. However, officials committed $2 billion to the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in late 2023, creating a channel for directing aid to targeted organizations and nations requiring assistance.
The dozen regional centers will operate from Miami; Bogota, Colombia; Guatemala City; Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic; Kyiv, Ukraine; Amman, Jordan; Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; Nairobi, Kenya; Dakar, Senegal; Bangkok; Dhaka, Bangladesh; and Manila, Philippines.
