A Johannesburg men’s health clinic prepared to close its doors on Tuesday, a direct consequence of a freeze on U.S. foreign aid funding.
It was a somber scene at the Engage Men’s Health clinic as movers loaded an auction truck with furniture and office supplies, signaling the end of an organisation that had provided vital HIV treatment and support for the LGBTQ+ community.
Funded by USAID and the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), the clinic had served as a crucial healthcare provider. Its closure has raised serious concerns about how vulnerable community members will now access the life-saving treatment they need.
To recover some funds, Engage plans to auction off its assets, with proceeds going toward severance pay for more than 70 employees who are now jobless.
Joseph Adams, project manager of the OUT LGBT Wellbeing program under Engage Men’s Health, explained that staff had already been placed on unpaid leave in January after the Trump administration halted PEPFAR funding.
“We have clinicians, we have lay people, administration people, etc., that come here every day. This is their bread and butter, but it’s also what they strived to achieve at the end of the day,” Adams said.
“To tell them that you no longer have a job… it’s difficult,” he added.
The freeze on U.S. foreign aid has had ripple effects beyond South Africa. Many United Nations programs have been forced to cut staff, budgets, and services in countries ranging from Afghanistan and Sudan to Ukraine and beyond.
