Cuts to US aid leave Ghana facing a $156 million funding gap, with the health and agriculture sectors bracing for shortages of medicines and fertilizers.

The massive freeze on funding from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), ordered by President Donald Trump who has placed "America First!" on his agenda, has left thousands of people unemployed in the United States and abroad. The decision has also caused the interruption of humanitarian programs around the world.

"I don't know what will happen to me," an HIV-positive patient in Accra, one of about 150,000 people in Ghana dependent on USAID-funded antiretroviral drugs, told AFP.

Doctors are also warning of possible disruptions in the supply of medicines across the country.

"We are facing potential stock-outs, which could lead to an increase in preventable diseases, maternal deaths and a resurgence of viruses like malaria and tuberculosis," said the Ghana Health Service's Northern Region Medical Director, Abdulai Abukari, pointing to challenges in rural areas.

The shutdown of USAID, which left many of its initiatives in limbo, comes as the White House and Trump adviser Elon Musk have highlighted the agency's mismanagement, alleging fraud and wasteful spending.

Legal challenges have mounted as the Trump administration pursues budget cuts without congressional approval, with officials saying vital programs could be exempt.

But in Ghana, disruptions to U.S. funding are already beginning to be felt.

"It's terrifying to think that my survival depends on help that can be taken away like that," said the HIV-positive patient, who declined to give his name.

The health sector is bracing for a deficit of $78.2 million, out of a deficit of $156 million the country is currently facing following the withdrawal of US-funded initiatives, presidential spokesman Felix Kwakye Ofosu has said.

- Farmers without fertilizer -

Sulemana Iddrisu, a farmer in the north of the country preparing for the upcoming rainy season, is worried about being deprived of fertilizers or seeds that were subsidized by USAID.

While the World Food Programme has noted progress over the past two decades in reducing hunger in Ghana, the country's rural north in particular struggles with poverty, climate change and poor infrastructure.

"If we don't get the fertilizers and seeds on time, our yields will drop dramatically... this means less food in the markets, higher prices for everyone and possible food shortages across the country," said Mr Iddrisu, 56.

"This means less food for my family and less money to pay my children's school fees," he told AFP.

- "We can only pray" -

Ghana, a longtime U.S. ally in the region, is now looking for ways to fill funding gaps, including by reallocating funds to critical programs like malaria prevention, maternal health and HIV/AIDS treatment.

The government has turned to "international partners and financial institutions, including the World Bank, the African Development Bank and the European Union, for grants and loans to support key development projects," Ofosu said.

President John Mahama said he had directed the finance ministry to "explore all possible avenues of funding" to help critical sectors like health and agriculture "remain operational".

Yet in the short term, many are worried.

"It is good that the government is trying to intervene," said Mr Abukari of the Ghana Health Service. "But without immediate international support, the situation could spiral out of control."

For farmers like Sulemana Iddrisu, the outlook is bleak. "We can only pray."