Elon Musk: Zero people died from USAID cuts | The Economist

You don't buy the idea that anybody, to. put it really crudely and simply, any. kid in Africa died because of the. suddenness with which. >> Zero. >> I just don't think that's right. I just. don't think my I mean, I've had people. reporting in Africa who. >> How many NGOs are there that could that. could that could step in? Cuz bear in. mind this it was. it happened quickly. So, this and there. are literally tens of thousands of NGOs. >> Yeah, not everyone functions as fast as. you do. If if if if funding is cut off. for antiretrovirals overnight and it.

just stops, then people will die when. they don't have access to them and it. just. >> No, no, only if they cannot get funding. for that. But but the Gates Foundation. has $50 billion. What's what what Why what about that? What about any one of a number of. organizations? What about um. the uh um. >> Well, in many of these countries USAID. >> McKinsey whatever last name is used to. be Bezos. uh gave $50 billion. What about that? >> you don't have to Let's be practical. In. many of these countries USAID was the. biggest funder. But I I don't.

>> USAID was a political organization. >> It may also have been that, but it was. the biggest funder of of health care. systems. So, I I am. I'm very sure that um. >> of regime change. >> And And there may well be benefits from. having. changed. >> Also, USAID funding was not stopped. It. was moved to the State Department. >> It was stopped. There were huge numbers. of things shut down in Africa that were. that were kind of health related. >> of this. These claims are false. They're nonsense. Absolute nonsense. But. when funding is stopped for a fraudulent.

organizations or for something, do you. think they're going to say Do you think. they're going to say, "Well, we please. keep funding the fraud?" Or do you think. they're going to come up with a sad. story that sounds sympathetic in order. to get the funding restored? Obviously, it will be the latter and that's exactly. what they did. But zero died [clears throat] because of. those. Zero. point. >> zero. >> I actually have a lot of sympathy for. the change of the aid regime that the US.

under the Trump administration has. precipitated. However, I think the pace. and the suddenness with which it. happened will almost certainly have. caused unnecessary suffering and deaths. And I think both of those contributed. >> that's totally false. >> Okay. Well, let's. >> And obviously false because there there. are are. the amount of funding we're talking. about uh is far less than what can be. done that that the work can be supported. via private uh. via foundations like the Gates. Foundation uh or Mackenzie Bezos's.

foundation. Um she's given away tens of. billions of dollars. Um. the Gates Foundation has tens of. billions of dollars. Uh they are capable. of acting very quickly. Um and if they didn't, I would say. they're equally responsible. >> I see. Okay. >> Obviously. >> All right. >> Zero people died because of Doche. Zero.