A U.S. lawmaker, Congressman Scott Perry, has alleged that the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has been financing terrorist groups, including the Nigerian deadly terrorist organisation known as Boko Haram.
Perry, a Republican representing Pennsylvania, made the claim on Thursday during the inaugural hearing of the Subcommittee on Delivering on Government Efficiency.
The session, titled “The War on Waste: Stamping Out the Scourge of Improper Payments and Fraud,” focused on alleged misuse of taxpayer funds.
“Who gets some of that money? Does that name ring a bell to anybody in the room? Because your money, $697 million annually, plus shipments of cash, funds Madrasas, ISIS, Al-Qaeda, Boko Haram, ISIS-Khorasan, terrorist training camps. That’s what it’s funding,” Perry said.
According to the subcommittee’s website, it aims to collaborate with former President Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to eliminate waste, strengthen financial oversight, and investigate fraud.
Perry also cited reports that USAID allocated $136 million to build 120 schools in Pakistan but claimed there was “zero evidence” that the schools were ever constructed.
“If you think that the programme under Operation Enduring Sentinel, titled Women’s Scholarship Endowment, which receives $60 million annually, or Young Women Lead, which gets about $5 million annually, is going to women in Afghanistan, think again,” Perry added. “If you read the Inspector General’s report, the Taliban does not allow women to speak in public. Yet, we are expected to believe this money is improving their lives? It is not. You are funding terrorism, and it’s coming through USAID.”
He further criticized USAID’s spending in Pakistan, stating:
“Over the last 20 years, USAID has spent $840 million on Pakistan’s education programs, including $136 million for 120 schools that do not exist. Why would there be any evidence? The Inspector General can’t even access the sites. But we doubled down and spent another $20 million on educational television programs for children who can’t attend physical schools. They can’t attend because the schools don’t exist. Somebody else got the money. You are paying for terrorism. This has got to end.”
Former President Donald Trump has previously called for the closure of USAID, accusing it of corruption in a post on his Truth Social platform. His stance aligns with efforts by billionaire Elon Musk, whom Trump appointed to lead the Department of Government Efficiency.
Musk has been vocal in his criticism of USAID, calling it “a viper’s nest of radical-left Marxists who hate America.” He has also accused the agency of engaging in “rogue CIA work” and claimed it funded bioweapons research, including COVID-19.
Trump has vowed that DOGE will “dismantle government bureaucracy, slash excessive regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure federal agencies—essential to the ‘Save America’ movement.” He added, “This will send shockwaves through the system, and anyone involved in government waste, which is a lot of people!”
