Trump Was Wrong, DOGE Info Misleading

U.S. President Donald Trump has recently claimed that the $29 million in U.S. government aid intended to strengthen the political landscape in Bangladesh went to a firm that nobody ever heard of and that there are only two people working in that firm. He made this statement on February 21, 2025 during the Governors Working Session at the White House in Washington, DC. His remarks were widely reported by media outlets in Bangladesh, India, and other countries, fueling conspiracy theories on social media regarding U.S. financial influence in shifting Bangladesh’s political landscape.

Meanwhile, the issue has caused confusion in multiple ways. The U.S. Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) announced that US taxpayer dollars were going to be spent on the project called Strengthening Political Landscape (SPL) in Banglagesh, all of which have been cancelled and Donald Trump has said that the money went to that firm of the two individuals.

Mentioning Trump’s statement, various media outlets (1, 2, 3) have reported that a Bangladeshi firm has received $29 million in funding. Additionally, various social media posts have speculated about some Bangladeshi organizations, individuals, and projects (1, 2, 3, 4), claiming that they have received this $29 million in funding.

To investigate the claim, Dismislab sought to find answers to three questions: 1) How much money was allocated to the SPL project? 2) Who implemented it? 3) How was the money spent? 

Verification has shown that Trump’s claim is incorrect, and the DOGE’s statement is misleading. The $29 million did not go to a two-person firm. Instead, the SPL project was implemented by Democracy International (DI), a U.S.-registered organization with ongoing projects and staff in various countries. Furthermore, canceling the project did not result in the entire $29 million being saved, as was falsely claimed.

Who was implementing the Strengthening Political Landscape Project?

The SPL project was launched in 2017 and was executed by Democracy International Incorporated. According to its website, the project aimed to enhance political party skills, improve engagement between political parties and the public, and reduce political violence. Under the program, the organization provided training to political activists and engaged citizens, equipping them with skills to become effective leaders, advocate for inclusive policies, and communicate constructively to mitigate conflict.

But is Democracy International merely a two-person firm? No. According to its official records, Democracy International is registered in the U.S. and has implemented 218 projects worldwide. In Bangladesh alone, the organization has carried out at least 12 projects. While the total number of its employees worldwide is unclear, records from the SPL project in Bangladesh list five officials and their respective funding allocations. None of these officials are Bangladeshis either. 

Project Funding and Beneficiaries

The U.S. regularly provides financial assistance to Bangladesh for democracy promotion and governance. Several official U.S. government sources confirm that approximately $29.9 million  was allocated for the SPL project. Could Trump have been referring to a different project? That seems unlikely. A review of U.S. government spending data on USASpending.gov, the official database for federal expenditures, indicates that since 2001, only one governance-related project in Bangladesh has received funding close to $29 million—the SPL project.

Since 2017, Democracy International has collaborated with various organizations under the SPL initiative. Notable activities include:

• Development of an e-learning platform called “Politics Matters Bangladesh.”
• Formation of 10 Peace Pressure Groups (PPGs) in collaboration with The Hunger Project to prevent election-related violence and promote political dialogue among local leaders, civil society members, and professionals at the sub-district level.
• Training 536 young leaders from three largest Bangladeshi political parties – the Awami League, BNP, and Jatiya Party – under the Young Leaders Fellowship Program (YLFP).

The SPL project was not solely funded by the U.S. government. The United Kingdom also contributed financially. The U.K.’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Foreign Office or FCDO (formerly DFID) pledged £10 million for the Strengthening Political Participation II (SPP II) program in Bangladesh, of which £7.2 million was transferred to USAID. A portion of that money was then allocated to Democracy International’s SPL project.

A 2020 review report by The Hunger Project stated that under SPL, 236 Training of Trainers workshops were conducted, engaging 5,410 Bangladesh political leaders and activists (3,455 men and 1,955 women). The workshops aimed to enhance their decision-making skills, tolerance for opposing views, and ability to work collaboratively beyond party affiliations. The participants were primarily affiliated with the three main political parties in Bangladesh.

Under SPP II, £2 million of the U.K.’s pledged funds were also allocated to another U.S.-based organization, the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES). IFES, in collaboration with the Microgovernance Research Initiative at Dhaka University, implemented the Students Against Violence Everywhere (SAVE) program in various universities across Bangladesh. The SAVE initiative sought to build a student network that would help them understand conflict dynamics, recognize the role of peaceful politics, and develop skills to prevent politically motivated violence.

DOGE’s Misleading Statement

The controversy began on February 16, 2025, when the U.S. Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) posted on its X account that it had canceled funding for 15 projects where U.S. taxpayer money was going to be spent. Among the projects listed was the $29 million SPL initiative.

But did DOGE’s recent action actually save $29 million? According to data from USASpending.gov, the SPL project had been running in Bangladesh for eight years and was set to conclude in October 2025. The cancellation occurred just eight months before its scheduled end.

USASpending.gov, the official record of U.S. federal expenditures, distinguishes between “obligated” funds (committed but not yet spent) and “outlayed” funds (actually disbursed). The website (glossary) states: “An outlay occurs when federal money is actually paid out, not just promised to be paid (“obligated”).”

Records indicate that while $29.9 million was approved for SPL, only $16.9 million had been disbursed by 2025. This means that while the project was initially valued at nearly $30 million, Democracy International had received slightly more than half of that amount from the U.S. federal government over eight years. Thus, DOGE’s claim that $29.9 million was saved is inaccurate.

A detailed analysis of DOGE’s spending cuts has already sparked debates. A New York Times report pointed out multiple errors in the agency’s financial data, stating that DOGE had double or triple-counted some canceled contracts, incorrectly categorized partial contract cancellations as full terminations, and included agreements that had already ended under the Biden administration.

Correction: U.S. President Donald Trump said that $29 million, intended to strengthen the political landscape in Bangladesh, went to a firm that nobody had ever heard of. As a result, various media reports and social media posts referred to this company as a Bangladeshi entity. This detail was later added to the report. The mention of the two-person “Bangladeshi” firm was also included in this report. However, the reference to it being “Bangladeshi” was later removed.