WASHINGTON, DC: The Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) of the Donald Trump administration has announced that it is saving US taxpayers money by cancelling a slew of projects abroad, including one in Bangladesh.
In a bid to cut government spending, the DOGE on Saturday (local time), led by Tesla CEO said it is cancelling a USD 29 million funding intended for “strengthening the political landscape in Bangladesh” .
“USD 29M to ‘strengthening the political landscape in Bangladesh,'” an X post on DOGE read.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh’s Chief Adviser, Professor Muhammad Yunus, on Friday said that he has discussed with Tesla CEO Elon Musk a potential collaboration to launch Starlink satellite internet service in Bangladesh.
Yunus on Thursday held an extensive video discussion with Musk, the founder of SpaceX, Tesla, and X, to make further progress in introducing Starlink satellite to enhance internet service in Bangladesh.
Professor Yunus also extended an invitation to Elon Musk to visit Bangladesh for the potential launch of Starlink services, underscoring the significance of this initiative for national development, to which Musk responded positively.
“I look forward to it,” Musk said.
During their conversation, Yunus and Musk emphasised the transformational impact of Starlink’s satellite communications, particularly for Bangladesh’s enterprising youth, rural and vulnerable women, and remote communities.
In a post on X, the official DOGE handle listed the number of spending by US taxpayers that have been cancelled, including USD 10 million for “Mozambique voluntary medical male circumcision.”
Meanwhile among the list of projects cancelled by DOGE include a USD 22 million in funding intended for ‘voter turnout in India,’ a USD 39 million for “fiscal federalism” and “biodiversity conservation” in Nepal.
Similarly, USD 1.5 million for “voter confidence” in Liberia, USD 14 million for “social cohesion” in Mali, USD 2.5 million for “inclusive democracies in Southern Africa,” and USD 47 million for “improving learning outcomes in Asia” were also cancelled.
DOGE also announced the cancellation of USD 32 million to the Prague Civil Society Centre, USD 40 million for a “gender equality and women empowerment hub,” and USD 14 million for “improving public procurement” in Serbia.
US taxpayer dollars were going to be spent on the following items, all which have been cancelled:
– $10M for “Mozambique voluntary medical male circumcision”
– $9.7M for UC Berkeley to develop “a cohort of Cambodian youth with enterprise driven skills”
– $2.3M for “strengthening…
— Department of Government Efficiency (@DOGE) February 15, 2025
This is part of DOGE’s continued effort to outline significant changes in government spending over the last few weeks.
The effort by what the Donald Trump administration calls the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, is intended to cut government costs drastically but has sought access to critical computer systems, including the Treasury payment system, at the objection of others in the agencies, as CNN previously reported.
Recently, US President Donald Trump criticised the US Agency for International Development (USAID), claiming that the agency’s handling of funds is “fraudulently and unexplainable” and said that the agency should “close down.”
“USAID is driving the radical left crazy, and there is nothing they can do about it because the way in which the money has been spent, so much of it fraudulently, is totally unexplainable. The corruption is at levels rarely seen before. Close it down,” Trump wrote on X. (ANI)