The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has suspended its support to the EcoHealth Alliance (EHA), effectively halting ongoing conservation projects in Liberia. In a letter addressed to U.S. Senator Joni Ernst, USAID confirmed that it suspended additional funding to EHA for its Conservation Works Activity in Liberia on May 15, 2024.
USAID clarified that it does not have any other direct contracts with EHA nor is it aware of any indirect funding, such as subawards, being channeled to EHA at this time. In line with the agency's best interests, USAID has decided to terminate all ongoing activities with the organization and is currently working to conclude the Conservation Works Activity in Liberia in an orderly manner.
"We are pleased to provide the following responses to your questions," USAID stated in its letter to Senator Ernst. "USAID suspended new funding to EHA on May 15, 2024, and has terminated the EcoHealth Alliance Cooperative Agreement, Conservation Works Activity, Award Number 72066921CA00006, which will be officially effective as of August 15, 2024, following the close-out process that is currently underway.
The project focused on supporting biodiversity conservation in Liberia by improving the management of protected areas, promoting ecotourism, and fostering income generation opportunities."
Senator Ernst initially raised concerns regarding USAID's relationship with EcoHealth Alliance in a letter dated May 29, 2024. In response, USAID explained that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) had also taken action to suspend EHA on May 15, 2024, a decision that extended to all U.S. government agencies, including USAID. Since then, no further funding obligations have been made to the cooperative agreement with EHA, and as stated, the award has been formally terminated, pending any potential appeal from the organization.
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Regarding data access and retention, USAID confirmed that it has full access to all data submitted by EcoHealth Alliance for the Conservation Works Activity under USAID's development data policy and the terms of the cooperative agreement. Additionally, EHA had served as a subgrantee for the PREDICT-2 project from 2014 to 2020. The PREDICT-2 initiative sought to identify the threats posed by emerging viruses and improve rapid disease detection and response.
The PREDICT-2 datasets, submitted by U.C. Davis to the USAID Data Development Library between March 2020 and August 2021, are available at different levels of access, including data from the People's Republic of China. This follows USAID's procedures as outlined in ADS Chapter 579, ensuring that all datasets are handled appropriately in compliance with development data policies.
The termination of the EcoHealth Alliance's funding and activities in Liberia marks a significant step by USAID, amid broader U.S. government scrutiny of the organization's involvement in global health and conservation projects.
