Photo: Boakai Fofana/ allAfrica.com Washington — At its quarterly meeting December 19, the U.S. Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) board of directors selected Liberia, Niger, Sierra Leone, Morocco and Tanzania as eligible to develop proposals for new compacts, and Guatemala as eligible for a Threshold Program.
"This year's selection decisions are a testament to the 'MCC Effect,' the ability of MCC to provide incentives for countries to adopt policy reforms and strengthen institutions in order to become eligible for an MCC compact," said Daniel W. Yohannes, MCC's chief executive officer. "Liberia, Niger and Sierra Leone have worked hard for several years to meet MCC's rigorous eligibility standards, and the board is pleased to recognize these efforts by selecting them as eligible to develop compact proposals."
Examples of the types of reforms pursued by these countries range from new asset-disclosure requirements in an effort to combat corruption in Liberia to the introduction of free access to maternal and child health care in Sierra Leone to a dramatic increase in environmental protection in Niger.
The MCC Threshold Program is designed to help countries that are not yet eligible for MCC compacts but have demonstrated a significant commitment to improving policy performance on MCC's selection criteria for compact grants. MCC works with Threshold Program countries to enact targeted policy and institutional reforms focusing on the policy areas underlying MCC's eligibility indicators: ruling justly, investing in people and economic freedom. To date, MCC has signed Threshold Program agreements with 21 countries totaling more than $495 million.
An MCC compact is a multiyear agreement between the MCC and an eligible country to fund specific programs targeted at reducing poverty and stimulating economic growth.
Two current MCC compact countries, Morocco and Tanzania, were selected as eligible to develop second compact proposals. The countries have continued to perform well on the MCC scorecard and have been good development partners during first-compact implementation, MCC said. Second-compact eligibility depends on successful implementation of the first compact, continued good policy performance and development of proposals that have significant potential to promote economic growth and reduce poverty.
"MCC is pleased to have five countries selected as compact-eligible this year," Yohannes said. "These countries, like others selected as compact-eligible, will need to compete for scarce budget resources by maintaining a strong commitment to democratic and economic governance and by developing high-quality, timely compact proposals to promote growth and reduce poverty."
The board also chose Guatemala as eligible for a new Threshold Program. Guatemala is extremely close to meeting the MCC scorecard criteria, passing 10 indicators, including the Democratic Rights hurdle, and performing exactly on the median for Control of Corruption.
In addition to the new selections, the board re-selected Benin, El Salvador, Georgia and Ghana as eligible to continue developing compact proposals and Honduras and Nepal as eligible to continue developing Threshold Programs in 2013. No eligibility determinations were made for countries that have already signed compacts since these countries do not require annual re-selection, MCC said.
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AFRICA IE: AFRICAN UNION' NEEDS MORE INTERACTIVE PROGRAMS THAT VALIDATES ITS AUITNTENICIT; NOT GOALS AND DIRECTIVES PROVIDED BY WESTERN MINDS!!!. IS THE AFRICAN MIND SO STUNTED THAT HE DOES NOT HAVE A VISION FOR HIMSELF FOR TOMORROW ????? "AFRIC IS WEALTHY WHY ARENT AFRICAN MINDS ESTABLISHING THINK TANKS THT WILL ENABLE AFRICANS TO DEVELOP THIER OWN STANDARDS OF ACHIEVEMENTS ? WE MUST LOOK AT THE CHINESE MODEL OF FIVE YEAR PLANS OW MANY CHILDREN AND POOR CAN WE ELEVATE TO A MODERATE LIFE STYLE!!!!. ITS IMPERATIVE THAT WE COMLY WITH HIGH INTENSITY AGGRESSIVE DESIRES TO FAST TRACK YOUTHS INTO THE WORK FORCE. THERE ARE MILLIONS OF JOBS THAT ARE AVAILABLE TO YOUNGSTERS WITH THE AFRICAN THINK TANK THE3Y SHOULD IDSENGAGE FROM WESTERN MENTALITY ESTABLISH WHAT WOULD BE A SHOW CASING OF THE AFRICAN MIND. WE DO NOT HAVE TO BE VERSED IN EUROPEAN HISTORY AND NOT KNOW OUR OWN OR EVEN THE ORIGINS OF MAN. THE IDEA THAT THE AFRICAN CHILD DOES NOT KNOW THAT HE COMES FORM SUCH AN I8LLUSTRIOUS PASS. WE MUST NOT SEE SOME OF OUR AFRICAN TRADITIONS THAT HAVE BEEN PASSED TO OTHER PEOPES IN AFRICA WHO WERE ASSIMILATED INTO OUR WAY OF LIFE!!!!.. WE MUST NOT ALLO POVERTY TO BE THE DRIVING FPORCE OF IGNORANCE!!! "EVERY YOUTH HAS A MIND!1 WE CAN BOPRROW FROM THE WEST AS THEY HAVE BOPRROWED , WE WILL USE AS "WE PICK SENSE FROM NONSENSE" . WE NEED TO ANHANCE THE PROCCESS OF MENTAL BUILDING THE SELF ASSUREDNESS THAT GOES WITH FREE SPIRITED PEOPLE!!!!. WE DO NOT HAVE TO LOOK O OTHERS IF WE DECIDED THAT AS AFRICANS WE WILL SHARE WHAT WE HAVE WE WILL MAKE SURE THAT NO ONE IS LACKING WHEN IT COMES TO EDUCATION WE WILL AMKE SURE THAT EVERYONE HAS STABLE ROADS SO THATW ECAN SHARE IN ALL OPUR MARKETS!!!. WE WILL MAKE SURE THAT EVERY BROTHER AND SISTER STATE HAS ENOUGH DOCTORS TO TREAT THE MANY PEOPLE THAT LIVE ON THE CONTINENT; WE WILL MAKE SURE THAT EB NOUGH ENGINEERS ARE AVAILABLE TO TREAT WASTE AND BUILD PLANTS THAT CAN RERTURN OUR WASTE TO RENEWABLE ENRGIES!!!. WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT EVERY RURAL PERSOPN HAS ACCESS TO WATER IN THIER HOMES SO THAT THEY CAN ALSO WASH THEMSELVES AND HAVE THE LUXURY OF COOKING IN DOORS OR EVEN HAVE THIER KITCHEN OUT DOORS!!. WE NEED TO MAKLE RESOLUTIOSN THAT WILL BE ENTERED INTO OUR MEMBER STATES DIRECTIVES THAT WE CAN AVAIL OURSELVES OF OUR BROTHESR THROUGH OUT THE CONTINENT 'TO SUPPORT EACH OTHER IN REACHING EACH OTHERS NATIONAL GOALS!!!!. "WE NEED TO INTERGRATE,' WE NEED ORGANIZATION OF THE HIGHEST LEVEL, TO IMPLIMENT ALL OUR IDEALS VISIONS FOR THE CONTINENTS BENIFIT!!!." THERE IS NO SINGLE I' "WE ARE LIVING IN A PLURALISTIC EMBODIMENT " EVERYONE ELSE IS EVERYONES SOMEONE" "ONE IS THE PLURALSITIC ACCESSION TO ONE; THERE IS NO SPIRITUAL MENTAL PHYSICAL ACCOMPLISHMENSTS WIHOUT THE 1", THE ALL, OF 'I AND I "
It is always same news in Sierra Leone for 6 months...it makes the country appear static. No activities: social, economic, political!!!