Overview
- The Goalkeepers report projects 4.8 million under‑5 deaths in 2025, about 200,000 more than in 2024, the first annual increase since 2000.
- Global development assistance for health fell by just under 27% year over year, with U.S. reductions identified as the largest driver of the increase in child deaths.
- U.S. actions this year—including canceling foreign aid, dismantling USAID through DOGE, and halting Gavi funding in June—disrupted programs that the foundation says have cost lives.
- Bill Gates called the USAID shutdown a “gigantic mistake” and said he is urging President Trump to restore international health aid.
- IHME modeling in the report warns that sustained 20% cuts could lead to roughly 12 million additional child deaths by 2045, as further cutbacks by Britain, France and Germany compound the risks.