The UK government is withdrawing a higher-education programme for women and girls shortly after its launch. The scheme, Strengthening higher education for female empowerment (SHEFE), is described as aiming to support access to higher education for up to 1 million girls and women across Africa, Asia and the Middle East. Announced two years ago, the programme received a stated budget of £45 million. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) says the tender for SHEFE has been withdrawn, effectively ending the project after two years. The Guardian reports the decision follows UK aid cuts, which have reduced funding available for some overseas initiatives. Yahoo UK News provides the same overall development but does not add further details in the supplied text. Across the coverage, the key point is that the programme introduced under the previous Conservative government is being discontinued by the current UK government through the withdrawal of its procurement process. The sources agree on the programme’s name, its stated intended impact, the reported budget, and that it is being axed after a short period.