The United States is incurring nearly $25,000 in monthly storage costs for millions of dollars worth of contraceptives in Belgium that have become largely unusable due to improper storage and a reversal of destruction orders. The stock was originally intended for poorer nations.
The situation highlights significant waste in U.S. foreign aid spending and raises concerns about the availability of essential reproductive health supplies in lower-income nations, particularly at a time of acute global need.
The United States is incurring significant monthly storage costs for millions of dollars worth of contraceptives that are now largely unusable and stuck in Belgium, according to a report reviewed by Reuters. The stock, valued at approximately $9.7 million, includes implants and pills that have been warehoused since January of the previous year when U.S. foreign aid was frozen.
Storing and transporting these contraceptives has cost $360,667 between January 2025 and March of this year, with ongoing monthly storage expenses amounting to $24,550. These figures were provided by Chemonics, the contractor responsible for the procurement and delivery of the supplies for the U.S. government.
Reproductive rights organizations have criticized the situation, calling the waste of lifesaving supplies "indefensible" and "unconscionable" given the acute global need. Efforts by Chemonics to find a buyer or facilitate a donation for the stock faltered partly due to a lack of response from the U.S. government regarding its future.
Last June, an order to move and destroy the contraceptives resulted in approximately $8 million worth becoming unusable due to improper storage and lack of temperature control. In September, the U.S. reversed this destruction order. Despite a proposal from Chemonics to donate the remaining usable $1.7 million stock to Uganda for $239,000, the U.S. has not yet provided further instructions.