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US funding cuts threaten billions in South African research grants
Cape Times
|June 03, 2025
UCT and Stellenbosch University are developing contingency plans to mitigate the severe impact of the Trump administration's cuts to US grant funding, which threaten billions in research support.
According to UCT Acting Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Research and Internationalisation, Professor Jeff Murugan, without intervention, they stand to lose over R437 million in research funding in the next 12 months, and R1.67 billion over the period 2025-2027 if all "currently contracted, active US federal-funded awards are terminated".
"On 7 February 2025, the White House issued an Executive Order signalling the termination of aid and assistance to South Africa. As an immediate consequence, grants from the US Agency for International Development (USAID) were discontinued.
This abrupt action highlighted the vulnerability of UCT’s US federally funded research. UCT currently holds a portfolio of 178 US federal funded awards comprising both direct awards to UCT and subawards from collaborating institutions in the US.
This story is from the June 03, 2025 edition of Cape Times.
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