A Fijian who was working for USAID has shared his experience of losing his job after the closure of USAID by the Trump Administration.
Myron Williams said on March 1, he received an email titled “Cancellation of Contract and Termination of Award.”
“The letter itself was even worse, cold and detached,” he said.
He added for weeks, “the shadow of a USAID Stop Work Order had loomed over us.”
“We held onto hope, but deep down, we knew the reality—we were waiting for the inevitable.”
Mr Williams had worked for USAID for four years under the Our Fish Our Future project.
“The people I met, the communities I worked in, the government offices where I sat across from officials discussing policies, strategies, and solutions—all of it had shaped me.’
“It was more than a job; it was purpose. The privilege of working across the region, witnessing firsthand the resilience of the Pacific, and being part of something bigger than myself—it was an absolute pleasure.”
Mr Williams signed a new contract with Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) four days after losing his job with USAID.
