US cancels $21M funding for 'voter turnout' in India, $29M for Bangladesh crisis

The United States has cancelled millions of dollars in funding for several countries, including India and Bangladesh as the new administration led by President Donald Trump makes budget cut. Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) on Sunday announced that the US has decided to slash a $21 million program designed to increase voter turnout in India and a $29 million initiative aimed at strengthening Bangladesh's political landscape.

The decision, part of broader cuts to international aid, will impact key initiatives aimed at improving electoral processes and political stability in both countries. The cuts reflect a reassessment of US foreign aid priorities and a broader push to curtail spending on international development projects.

Elon Musk has time and again asserted that "America would go bankrupt" without budget cuts and the initiative seems to be in line with the budget overhaul that the administration has been planning.

FUNDING FOR INDIA, BANGLADESH CANCELLED

The $21 million earmarked for India was specifically targeted to boost voter participation in the country’s elections. However, this funding will no longer be available, as announced by DOGE on social media platform X.

Notably, the announcement comes just days after Donald Trump met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the two leaders made significant announcements to strength US-India ties. However, this did not find a mention in the joint statements or the press conference,

In Bangladesh, the $29 million program was designed to foster political stability and enhance democratic governance. The country has been grappling with a political crisis with Army ousting Sheikh Hasina-led government amid violent protests. Even though Hasina fled to India and an interim government led by Mohammad Yunus is now ruling the country, political stability has not been achieved yet.

OTHER COUNTRIES IMPACTED

$10M for "Mozambique voluntary medical male circumcision" $9.7M for UC Berkeley to develop "a cohort of Cambodian youth with enterprise driven skills" $2.3M for "strengthening independent voices in Cambodia" $32M to the Prague Civil Society Centre $40M for "gender equality and women empowerment hub" $14M for "improving public procurement" in Serbia $486M to the “Consortium for Elections and Political Process Strengthening,” including $22M for "inclusive and participatory political process" in Moldova $20M for "fiscal federalism" in Nepal $19M for "biodiversity conversation" in Nepal $1.5M for "voter confidence" in Liberia $14M for "social cohesion" in Mali $2.5M for "inclusive democracies in Southern Africa" $47M for "improving learning outcomes in Asia" $2M to develop "sustainable recycling models" to "increase socio-economic cohesion among marginalized communities of Kosovo Roma, Ashkali, and Egypt"

TRUMP LAUDS ELON MUSK

Elon Musk's DOGE, an initiative by Donald Trump's administration as he returned to office for a second term, aims to carry out his agenda of federal spending cuts and deregulation. The order that established it, says it was formed to "modernise federal technology and software to maximise governmental efficiency and productivity."

Recently, Donald Trump credited DOGE for finding tens of billions of dollars in government savings. Speaking to reporters on February 11, Trump stated, “We’re talking about tens of billions of dollars that we’ve already found... But you’re talking about maybe 500 billion. It’s crazy the numbers you’re talking about,” as reported by The Washington Post.