John,

I'm coming to you again with an update on the U.S. government's foreign aid pause, which has been in effect since January 20. The impact has been devastating on millions of children around the world. And we're talking about impact today – not in some theoretical tomorrow.

I was in the Democratic Republic of the Congo last year and saw an amazing Save the Children program that helped children who couldn't identify a single letter in the alphabet. Within eight weeks, they were reading full stories to their classmates. These were 8 and 10-year-olds whose lives were now changed from one intervention.

That program is now terminated.

More than 20,000 kids don't have access to that level of education anymore. That's just a small example of one of the more than 100 programs that have been terminated at Save the Children alone.

At less than 1% of the federal budget, humanitarian and developmental assistance is a phenomenal return on investment. It helps countries around the world prosper. It improves their safety, which is good for our own security here in the United States. Not to mention that education, safety and freedom are human rights we should all fight for.

We were ready for a new administration's thorough review of how federal aid was spent – that's an important part of the process and should continue. But the disorderly manner in which this was done was nothing short of wasteful, cruel and chaotic.

We have food and medicine lying in warehouses, already at location, but we can't distribute them. These are perishable goods that will go to waste. We have to explain to communities that we're being forced to withdraw from stabilization centers that treat severe malnutrition. If we stop this treatment for even a couple of days, children will die.

How do you explain to a mom who's watching her child cling to life that we can no longer provide this cheap and effective treatment? That we're going to rip it away without any form of transition or handover? That she'll have to watch her child die because of politics?

We haven't been paid to do the lifesaving work children need to stay alive. I'm speaking out today because I believe that there is a lack of awareness about the immediate cost of these decisions. I do not believe in good faith that it's the intention of the teams working on this review, for children to die from such a sudden withdrawal. It's inhumane and irresponsible to add more chaos to already suffering children and their families.

There are real, immediate and dire consequences of the decisions being taken. We need to give a voice to the communities we serve – communities just trying to provide for their children and survive the most devastating challenges. We need you to know that there are mothers out there who are hoping for a miracle.

And the miracle is simple – it's just sitting in a warehouse, unable to be touched.

With hope,

Janti Soeripto
President & CEO
Save the Children