Thousands of employees at the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) will be placed on leave from Friday night, the agency has said in a statement on its website.

In the announcement, USAID said all "direct-hire personnel" will be placed on leave at the end of this week except those on "mission-critical functions, core leadership and specially designated programs".

The move is the latest in a string of cuts President Donald Trump has made to government-funded programs since returning to office last month.

Many have argued the choice to shut it down could have a profound impact on humanitarian programmes around the world.

USAID said it would work with the State Department to arrange and pay for return travel for its many personnel posted outside the US within the month.

Those employees who are part of the exceptions will be told by 15:00 EDT (20:00 GMT) on Thursday.

A statement posted on USAID's website concludes with the message: "Thank you for your service."

The agency, which provides humanitarian aid to more than 100 countries, employees 10,000 people worldwide and two-thirds of those people work overseas, according to the Congressional Research Service.

On Tuesday, many USAID staffers received an email notifying them they had been placed on paid administrative leave.

The email, obtained by BBC News, told employees they must remain "available" by telephone and email during business hours but are not allowed to enter USAID buildings.

Since returning to the White House last month, Trump and his allies have prioritised slashing government funding.

As part of that move, the Trump administration turned its focus on USAID.

Earlier this week, Secretary of State Marco Rubio became the acting head of USAID, merging one government agency into another.

Elon Musk, the billionaire Tesla CEO who was appointed to run a new agency to identify spending cuts in the US government, has said USAID should be shut down as it is "beyond repair".

Many have cautioned that closing USAID's doors would have devastating effects on vulnerable populations across the world.

USAID's activities range from providing prosthetic limbs to soldiers injured in Ukraine, to clearing landmines and containing the spread of Ebola in Africa.

Democrats in Washington DC have been particularly critical of the move.

"[USAID is] a foreign policy tool with bipartisan origins that is critical in this dangerous global environment," New Jersey Senator Andy Kim wrote on social media. "Gutting it means gutting our ability to compete and keep America safe."

The agency, founded in 1961, has bases in 60 countries and works in dozens of others.

USAID managed more than $40b (£32.25b) in fiscal year 2023, according to the Congressional Research Service.