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State Department Launches Disaster and Humanitarian Response Bureau Focused on Emergency Aid

The move caps the Trump administration’s shift away from broad development programs.

A black plastic shroud covers the signage on the windows of the former offices of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 24, 2025. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
President Donald Trump speaks with reporters before departing on Marine One from the South Lawn of the White House, Friday, March 20, 2026, in Washington, as Secretary of State Marco Rubio listens. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
President Donald Trump walks with Secretary of State Marco Rubio before departing on Marine One from the South Lawn of the White House, Friday, March 20, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
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Overview

  • The new bureau will oversee U.S. responses to natural disasters and humanitarian crises worldwide, completing a reorganization of foreign assistance.
  • It will have about 200 staff, operate through 12 regional hubs, and receive roughly $5.4 billion in annual funding, according to officials.
  • The hubs will be in Miami; Bogota; Guatemala City; Santo Domingo; Kyiv; Amman; Addis Ababa; Nairobi; Dakar; Bangkok; Dhaka; and Manila.
  • The bureau’s mandate prioritizes life-saving assistance and global food security rather than longer-term climate or social initiatives.
  • It falls under an undersecretariat currently without a Senate-confirmed leader and led by Jeremy Lewin, with Ryan Shrum initially heading the bureau, following the dismantling of USAID and paired with last year’s $2 billion contribution to the U.N. humanitarian office.