There is a growing consensus to collaborate and better coordinate efforts across various government agencies to address acute hunger and implement innovative solutions to sustainable food security to benefit the world’s poor.  Food security policy experts from across the U.S. Government gathered for a panel convened this week by the House Hunger Caucus to discuss just that.

Jolyne Sanjak, Managing Director for Implementation Support speaks at the U.S. House of Representatives Hunger Caucus briefing on food aid, nutrition, and agriculture Development Programs

MCC is pleased to have had a seat at the table, and we welcomed the opportunity to talk about our sustainable, market-based solutions to food security in partnership with the poor worldwide.  I invite you to read what Jolyne Sanjak, MCC’s Managing Director for Implementation Support, shared about our efforts to date.  We are grateful to the House Hunger Caucus-under the leadership of Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA), Rep. JoAnn Emerson (R-MO), Rep. Jerry Moran (D-KS), Rep. Betty McCollum (R-MN), Rep. Earl Pomeroy (D-ND), and Rep. John Boozman (R-AR)-for hosting the event and continuing to advance work on national and international hunger and food insecurity issues.

Our mission to reduce global poverty through economic growth means addressing the twin challenges of food insecurity and global hunger.  That’s why MCC has obligated nearly $3.2 billion since April 2005 in rural and agriculture-related projects to promote long-term access to sufficient, safe, and affordable food, including projects in 17 of our 18 partner countries. Projects like these are proof positive of the U.S. Government’s commitment to global food security.

As a “smart power” resource for positive U.S. global engagement, MCC is an innovative, country-led, results-driven approach to reducing global poverty through sustainable economic growth.  Looking ahead, MCC’s fiscal year 2010 budget provides funding for a strong pipeline of countries, including Jordan, Malawi, and the Philippines, that are working with their civil societies to develop homegrown compact proposals that will overcome barriers to economic growth.  The budget also supports MCC’s threshold program, which helps countries not eligible for compacts improve their policy environments.

The fiscal year 2010 budget request will allow MCC to build on its successes to date.  MCC’s signed commitments so far of $6.4 billion will raise the incomes of individuals in partner countries worldwide by nearly $12 billion over the life of our investments.  These gains will benefit more than 22 million people, as improved national and regional infrastructure, agricultural systems and practices, and other community services spur investment and raise local incomes. 

We look forward to working with Congress to fully support the President’s budget request for MCC.

For details on how MCC will allocate the $1.42 billion fiscal year 2010 budget to fight global poverty, read MCC’s just-released Congressional Budget Justification.

MCC agrees, and joined like-minded colleagues, including Ambassador Verveer, for an insightful conversation on the importance of gender integration in food security. Presentations from Women Thrive Worldwide-who partnered with us to make the event possible-and the International Food Policy Research Institute provided a rich framework to better understand the vital role gender plays in long-term economic development and sustainable food security.  A country’s sustainable growth is inextricably tied to providing all its citizens-men and women alike-with the tools they need to contribute to the productive lives of their households and communities.  Integrating gender into U.S. development assistance makes full use of every human being’s potential to create opportunities for themselves and their families.  Be sure to read the transcript.

MCC’s event on the nexus between food security and gender is the first in a series that we are planning to keep the spotlight shining on this global development priority.  Check back for details on upcoming events related to food security, to be posted soon to our website.

True to our ongoing commitment to transparency, I invite you to visit our website and read this policy—and, in the near future, a resource guide will be made available.  Since our establishment, we have practiced fiscal accountability, technical due diligence, and monitoring and evaluation as part of how we operate.  Our policy now formally captures and outlines these and other principles we have been applying-and will continue to apply-in order to prevent, detect, and remediate the risk of fraud and corruption in MCC’s threshold program as well as in compact development and implementation.  I want to thank those in the development and NGO community who provided valuable feedback to us during the process we undertook to formalize our policy.

At a time when Americans are focused intensely on accountability, U.S. Government agencies, including MCC, continue to do our part to incorporate heightened accountability into all facets of our work.  Fraud and corruption divert and diminish the flow of benefits to those who need them the most. The seriousness of our dedication to economic growth and poverty reduction means that we are serious about addressing corruption.  We want every development dollar we invest to deliver the greatest benefit possible in the fight against global poverty.

Board members demonstrated their firm resolve to address the needs of the poor.  They faced difficult decisions, and they engaged in a thoughtful debate about the best way forward.  Given the importance they place on these issues, the Board decided to convene an extraordinary interim review session to discuss ongoing concerns regarding Nicaragua and Armenia.  The Board’s deliberate approach reaffirms MCC’s commitment to sound policy performance as a fundamental prerequisite for receiving U.S. development dollars.  Long-term economic development and poverty reduction can best take root in countries where the policy conditions are conducive for growth, and governments themselves are committed to reform.

Secretary Clinton has already spoken of the important role development plays in defining America’s global reputation and in advancing President Obama’s foreign policy goals.  The Administration’s strong international affairs budget for fiscal year 2010 is matching this rhetoric.  It will allocate the resources necessary to achieve the results that matter in the fight against global poverty. 

With the Board’s continued leadership and a budget that allows us to fulfill our mission, MCC’s partner countries can pursue country-sourced and country-driven programs that are foundational to reducing poverty and stimulating economic growth in significant and sustainable ways.

The audience raised insightful questions during the event, including how best to include women and youth in a participatory process that engages them constructively in their country’s development agenda.  Exploring the link between country-led development among the world’s poorest countries and U.S. security interests was another timely issue that came up.  It matters for a number of reasons, best summarized by the reminder from Zambia’s Ambassador, Dr. Inonge Mbikusita-Lewanika, that we all live in a “global village.”

Country ownership is a fundamental best practice in development.  And-I’m proud to say-it’s one of the U.S. Government’s core principles at work through MCC as we partner with the poorest of the poor.  Sean Mulvaney, now with the German Marshall Fund, talked about his work with former Congressman Jim Kolbe to establish MCC as a groundbreaking foreign assistance reform initiative that embraced country ownership.  It remains at the core of what we do, as described in Alicia Phillips Mandaville’s paper on MCC’s approach to country ownership.

We find that country ownership is one of the key ingredients not only in designing but also in sustaining smart, effective solutions to poverty reduction.  Both those partner countries receiving MCC assistance, and the American taxpayers providing it, expect no less.  Especially now, as the global economy suffers, we need to look for ways to make every development dollar count if we want to deliver tangible change in the lives of the world’s poor.

Join the discussion by reviewing the event’s transcript.

From its creation, MCC has advocated for country-led and country-implemented anti-poverty strategies that stress efficiency and accountability.  Our aid rewards countries committed to good governance and to results.  I discussed these very principles during a conversation with Steve Radelet from the Center for Global Development earlier today.  During the event, I was again impressed by the active, vocal support that exists for these principles.

We hear these same values echoed in studies by leading think tanks and in recent opinion pieces on the pages of America’s newspapers.  The private sector members of MCC’s Board of Directors—Lorne Craner, Bill Frist, Kenneth Hackett, and Alan Patricof—penned a bipartisan, joint op-ed for the New York Times on December 20th in which they stated that “not all foreign aid is the same.  Hard lessons learned over the past five decades have taught us that good governance, accountability, local ownership, and long-term engagement are the keys to success.”

As Americans prepare for a historic inauguration, President-elect Obama’s administration recognizes the value of foreign aid to enhance America’s place in the world.  MCC is a manifestation of this.

MCC’s smart power not only makes the world a better place but also makes America’s place in the world better.  In ongoing discussions about the future framework of U.S. foreign aid, MCC will serve as a strong platform for building upon and reinforcing what works to deliver effective assistance and thereby bring sustainable positive change to the lives of the world’s poor.  I’ve been honored to be a part of MCC’s contribution to this noble effort and will continue to closely follow its progress moving forward as an advocate and champion.

I invite you to read about the countries the Board selected as now eligible to apply for an MCC compact (Colombia, Indonesia, and Zambia) or threshold program (Liberia). True to MCC’s innovative approach to development assistance, it is now up to these newly-selected countries to consult with their citizens, prioritize their development goals, and work toward developing their compact or threshold proposal to generate the opportunity and growth essential for reducing poverty. The Board also made an important decision regarding our partnership with Nicaragua. These types of decisions are ones that MCC’s Board takes very seriously and only after close consultation and intense deliberation. You can read more about the Board’s decision regarding future collaboration with Nicaragua, and other concerns voiced during yesterday’s meeting, on our website, www.mcc.gov.

It has been an enormous privilege to work with such an outstanding Board of Directors, whose sage advice and reasoned decisions have served MCC extraordinarily well in realizing our impressive $6.7 billion portfolio of compacts in 18 countries and threshold programs in 19 countries. These grants are training farmers, registering property rights, building roads, educating and immunizing children, and supporting business development. The transition to the next administration means that a new slate of public servants will replace Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, United States Trade Representative Susan Schwab, and USAID Administrator Henrietta Fore. The new appointees will join the four private sector members who will continue serving on the Board—Lorne Craner, Bill Frist, Ken Hackett, and Alan Patricof. The ongoing leadership of these private sector Board members ensures continuity and provides valuable institutional memory that will be of tremendous benefit to MCC moving forward. The participation of these private sector Board members is one of the most unique elements of MCC’s management, reaffirming that the fight against poverty involves not just the resources of government but also the ingenuity and innovation of civil society and private enterprise.

Year’s end is always a time of reflection, a time to ponder the milestones achieved and the goals still ahead. While we have made measurable strides in reducing poverty through MCC’s partnerships, there is still more to do. The year ahead marks an exciting new chapter in MCC’s history. Our partnerships and programs will continue. Implementation progress will continue to multiply as more projects come to fruition. Our way of awarding development assistance will continue to draw interest and attention as discussions intensify about the future architecture of foreign aid. Poll results released yesterday through the Modernizing Foreign Assistance Network confirm that 70 percent of engaged opinion elites favor “reforms to improve the effectiveness of foreign aid by shifting aid dollars from less effective programs to programs that help hungry and poor people in developing countries provide for their families.” More than eight in ten “favor cutting federal programs that don’t work and making those that do more efficient.” They make the case for modernizing foreign assistance by stressing strategy, efficiency, and accountability. These are the principles we stand by here at MCC.

With change upon us, the permanence of MCC’s principles equip us well to make further progress in the fight against global poverty in 2009 and beyond. My hope for you and yours this holiday season is the same one I have for those benefitting from MCC programs in partners countries worldwide: peace, health, prosperity. Happy holidays and best wishes for the New Year.