Officials for the agency were notified of the planned cuts on the same day they learned that about 800 awards and contracts administered through U.S.A.I.D. were being canceled, three people said.

In a brief note posted on the international development agency's website, almost all employees were told they would be put on leave. The note ended with the words, "Thank you for your service."

President Donald Trump's administration plans to keep fewer than 300 staff at the U.S. Agency for International Development out of the agency's worldwide total of more than 10,000, four sources told Reuters on Thursday.