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With the U.S. Agency for International Development officially dismantled and its remnants folded into the State Department, the landscape of global aid is at a turning point. We delve into expert perspectives on what the future of foreign assistance might entail, exploring proposed transformations from widening the donor base beyond traditional Western nations to building new institutions and streamlining existing ones, such as the United Nations. This reimagining of aid aims to create a more effective and equitable system for a world grappling with evolving challenges and shifting geopolitical dynamics.

With France, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States all cutting their aid budgets at the same time for the first time in decades, many low- and middle-income countries are facing steep declines in support. While African leaders have called the cuts “brutal,” they have also maintained that the slashing of foreign aid may act as the wake-up call needed to break their dependency on traditional donors.

We also analyze President Trump's "big, beautiful bill" and its potential implications for the global development sector.

To dig into these stories and others, Devex Business Editor David Ainsworth sits down with Managing Editor Anna Gawel and global development expert Nasra Ismail for the latest episode of This Week in Global Development.

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00:00 Introduction to Global Development Conversations
08:15 The Need for Fair Treatment and Collaboration
14:38 The Big Beautiful Bill and Its Implications
24:31 The Impact of Legislative Changes on Development
29:24 Concluding Thoughts on Future Directions