Witnessing the Human Impact of USAID Cuts on a Refugee Camp Left Behind

On July 1, 2025, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) was officially shut down. Critical public health, education, nutrition, and violence-prevention programs ended seemingly overnight, cutting off essential services that millions of people relied on for their health, safety, and well-being.

At Global Girls Glow, we know intimately from our work across more than 30 countries that when resources disappear, the consequences are often most deeply felt by girls and women. The dismantling of USAID is no exception. 

Last fall, members of our executive team traveled to Dzaleka Refugee Camp in Malawi — one of the communities hardest hit by these historic funding cuts — to meet with girls and community leaders, understand how the loss of USAID-supported programs was reshaping daily life, and determine how we could help address the most urgent needs.

Here’s what we learned. 

About Dzaleka Refugee Camp

Dzaleka Refugee Camp, located just outside of Malawi’s capital city of Lilongwe, is home to refugees who have escaped conflict, violence, and hardship from neighboring countries, including Burundi, Rwanda, Ethiopia, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. 

Established in 1994 amidst the Rwandan genocide, the camp was originally intended to accommodate only 10,000 people. Its population has since skyrocketed to more than 60,000 refugees — overwhelming existing infrastructure and putting significant strain on already limited resources. 

While families living in the camp receive a monthly stipend from the World Food Programme (WFP), they are not allowed to own land, obtain formal business licenses, or leave camp grounds without official permission. 

How USAID Cuts Are Reshaping Life at Dzaleka

The shutdown of USAID had an immediate impact on life in Dzaleka. 

Funding for the camp was slashed by an alarming 90%, with the monthly stipends provided by the WFP falling from $10 to between $7 and $8 per person. The agency has warned that, without additional funding, it may be forced to suspend the program entirely — which would leave the tens of thousands of camp residents without a source of income.

As our team walked through the camp, reminders of what might have been were everywhere we looked. Empty UNHCR buildings and other NGO-affiliated office spaces remained, completely abandoned – as if monuments to the promises they left unfulfilled. 

During a visit to Dzaleka Refugee Camp, our team witnessed the impact of USAID cuts on daily life in the camp.

One of the most stark reminders of this was a half-finished school block not far from our program operations. It was built with the intention of establishing an all-girls school for 1,000 female students. But construction paused when the funding cuts took effect. There are currently no plans to finish the project. 

As we spoke with camp residents, we were reminded time and time again of the programs and opportunities that seemingly evaporated overnight. We were told of medical services, computer trainings, capacity-building workshops, and programs for women and girls that ended once international organizations started withdrawing their staff. 

“People here are worried,” one resident told us. “They are wondering ‘What will we do? Where will we go? Who will support us now?’”

What We Heard at Dzaleka, And How We’re Responding

Despite these extraordinary challenges, our team also witnessed the hope, joy, strength, and remarkable resilience of the girls and mentors who participate in our signature program, GLOW Club, in the camp. 

Since 2023, we’ve been working hand-in-hand with a local organization run by Dzaleka refugees, Solidarity of Refugee Women for the Social Welfare (SOFERES), to connect adolescent girls in the camp with trusted, trained female mentors: women just like them who live in Dzaleka and have navigated similar challenges of displacement and scarcity. 

These mentors facilitate our proven GLOW Club curriculum through weekly sessions with small groups of girls that help them develop social and emotional skills, find and begin using their voice, and process and heal from painful life experiences in a safe, supportive environment. 

“People here are worried. They are wondering ‘What will we do? Where will we go? Who will support us now?’”

At the time of our visit, we were providing support to 100 girls through a team of 5 dedicated local mentors. As we spoke with club members and program staff, it became clear that beneath the headlines, and despite the unique challenges of growing up in a refugee camp, many of the barriers girls faced were universal. 

Early marriage, domestic violence, and limited access to menstrual hygiene products and educational opportunities were everyday concerns — until girls joined GLOW Club. 

One club member, Darlene, shared that she dropped out of school for a period of time because her family couldn’t afford the school fees.

“When I dropped out, my parents thought that I would get married,” she shared. “But GLOW Club taught me how to speak up and advocate for myself so I could continue my studies. I went back to school, and I’m now about to graduate. My parents have said, ‘My daughter is still in school because of GLOW Club.’” 

Another club member, Loyce, shared how her life was shaped from a young age by her circumstances and the limitations placed on girls in her community – two things she was determined to overcome. 

“Life as a refugee is not easy. We rely on the WFP for food, our parents don’t have permanent jobs, and we don’t get adequate money for things like school fees,” Loyce shared. “I grew up here in the camp, watching girls get married at a very young age. I started imagining: Maybe tomorrow it will be me.”

GLOW Club member Loyce grew up in Dzaleka, and is committed to creating more opportunities for the girls who live there.

Through her weekly GLOW Club sessions, Loyce began understanding the power of using her voice to speak up for herself and other girls, and how promoting gender equality could improve life in the camp for the entire community.

“If you give girls a chance, we will show you the unexpected,” she shared. “We are strong. We were born with power within ourselves. And I would like to see a world where girls are free to be, to dream, to aspire, and to achieve. A world where their dreams can come true.”

Our visit, and hearing these powerful reflections from girls in the camp who have started to believe in the power of their voice, strengthened our commitment to making that vision a reality. 

Because girls everywhere — especially those who the world has turned their back on — deserve consistent investment, unwavering support, and people who show up, stand beside them, and affirm that their voices matter.

Like the rest of the international community, we don’t know what will happen next in Dzaleka, or what additional ramifications may result from the global humanitarian funding crisis. But we are committed to being a part of the solution.

As a direct result of our visit, we tripled our investment in Dzaleka in 2026, expanding our impact to 200 more girls throughout the camp to provide a total of 300 girls in Dzaleka with mentorship, support, and life-changing skills. 

At a time when funding for girls in some of the world’s most underserved areas is being scaled back, we are proud to invest more — because the need has never been greater.

As a direct result of our visit, we tripled our investment in Dzaleka in 2026, expanding our impact to 200 more girls throughout the camp to provide a total of 300 girls in Dzaleka with mentorship, support, and life-changing skills.

We know that when girls have the opportunity to learn and lead, they strengthen not only their own lives, but their families, their communities, and the entire world. 

As we look ahead to the future of Dzaleka Refugee Camp, we hold with us this powerful message from Loyce, who reminds us that even in times of crisis and uncertainty, investing in girls is one of the most promising solutions we have:

“In Dzaleka, we are not separate. We are one. When someone has a problem, it’s our problem. And we organize to help that one person.” 

Interested in learning more about our life-changing program, GLOW Club? Read about our impact in Kenya: For This Teen Mother, Mentorship Was A Lifeline. 

Global Girls Glow mentors girls around the world to become powerful advocates and confident leaders. Through our signature program, GLOW Club, we create safe, supportive spaces for girls in some of the world’s most underserved areas to connect with trusted mentors, develop the confidence to lead, and begin dreaming without limits. Since our founding, we’ve ignited the power of over 100,000 girls — and we’re just getting started.