State Department to fund expansion of Zipline drone deliveries in Africa

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The State Department will fund Zipline's expanded medical drone deliveries in Rwanda and four other African countries. Photo: Courtesy of Zipline

Zipline says it will receive up to $150 million from the U.S. State Department to expand drone deliveries of blood, vaccines and other medical supplies in five African countries.

Why it matters: The contract represents an early example of the Trump administration's new "America First" foreign assistance agenda, touted in July by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, following its decision to shut down the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).