The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) is closing its Southern Africa bureau due to funding constraints. The agency relies heavily on the US for nearly half of its budget, but President Donald Trump's administration has slashed foreign aid contracts as part of its "America First" agenda. This includes funding cuts to life-saving UN programs, with the US cutting more than 90% of the US Agency for International Development's foreign aid contracts and over $58 billion in overall US assistance worldwide. The WFP provides food and cash assistance to people suffering from hunger due to crop shortages, conflict, and climate change. The US is the single largest donor to the WFP, providing $4.5 billion of its $9.8 billion budget last year. An El Nino-induced drought last year caused several countries in Southern Africa to declare a national disaster. The agency will consolidate its eastern and southern African operations and run both from Nairobi. The funding cuts come as the region struggles to withstand a severe drought. The WFP says that over 60% of the food it procures is used in operations in the region where it was purchased. The agency was already short on funding, having raised just one-fifth of what it needed for the drought response last year. The closure of the Southern Africa bureau will not affect country operations in the region, but it highlights the challenges faced by the WFP in providing aid to those in need.