ºÚÁÏÌìÌÃ

First came the freeze and then the axe fell.

In late February, the Trump administration cancelled nearly 10,000 foreign aid grants and contracts worth almost $60 billion, ending about 90% of the U.S. Agency for International Development's global work.

The termination notices came after President Donald Trump ordered a 90-day pause in January to assess whether aid projects were aligned with his "America First" agenda.

The global aid system has been plunged into turmoil, with lifesaving projects shut down, staff let go and people turned away from clinics, schools and healthcare centres.

Major United Nations health programmes were among those to get termination notices, including UNAIDS, the Stop TB Partnership and Scaling Up Nutrition as well as projects helping millions of forcibly displaced people.

Aid programmes are now struggling to figure out how they can keep going, with many aid officials warning of deaths, destitution and debilitating setbacks in critical health programmes.

Our global team of correspondents explores what this seismic upheaval means for millions of people today, looks at who has been hit hardest hit and asks who can fill the funding gap.