The United States Government has terminated the services of Baylor College of Medicine Children’s Foundation Uganda (Baylor-Uganda), one of the largest providers of child and adolescent HIV care in the country.
The decision comes just a month after the U.S. instituted a three-month halt on foreign programmes to realign its foreign policy priorities.
In a notice dated February 26, 2025, signed by Adam Cox, Deputy Director of the Office of Acquisition and Assistance at USAID, the termination was described as a “policy determination” made in the national interest. The directive was issued by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is also the Acting Administrator for USAID.
“Secretary Rubio and PTDO Deputy Administrator Marocco have determined your award is not aligned with Agency priorities and decided that continuing this program is not in the national interest,” the letter reads in part.
Baylor-Uganda has been a critical pillar in Uganda’s health system, offering HIV prevention, care, and treatment services across eleven cities and forty-four districts.
The organization has also provided reproductive, maternal, neonatal, child, and adolescent health services, alongside tuberculosis care and non-communicable disease management.
The termination order directed Baylor-Uganda to immediately cease all activities, terminate sub-awards and contracts, and avoid incurring any further obligations.
For years, Baylor-Uganda has played a vital role in Uganda’s HIV fight, particularly through free medical male circumcision services—a key component of HIV prevention in high-risk communities.
Health officials and beneficiaries have expressed concern that the closure will leave thousands of vulnerable people, especially children and adolescents living with HIV, without access to lifesaving care.
While the U.S. government has granted waivers for urgent health programs to continue during the review period, Baylor-Uganda’s shutdown raises fears of service disruptions in already hard-hit areas.
As Uganda grapples with high HIV prevalence rates, the sudden halt of such a vital program threatens to undo years of progress in the fight against HIV/AIDS.
