Fighting Global Poverty:  The right thing to do; the right thing for America

Posted on September 30, 2008 by Ambassador John Danilovich, Chief Executive Officer

Recent events have focused increased attention on how closely the world’s economies are dependent on one another to achieve global prosperity and security. At the Millennium Challenge Corporation, we can see first-hand how poverty anywhere is a threat to prosperity everywhere. Finding long-term solutions to fight the problem of global poverty is not simply the right thing to do, it’s also the most expedient thing to do - for the men and women of our partner countries and for our long-term economic stability here in America.

MCC announced this week that another $2.55 billion in U.S. Government poverty-reduction grants had entered into force in Lesotho, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, and Tanzania. This means that these programs are now entering the implementation phase, joining 11 other compacts already being implemented around the world. Over the next five years, the work of design, preparation, training, construction, and monitoring and evaluation will take place in a number of sectors that will bring tangible results for the people of these regions. In Morocco, this means more efficient fisheries. In Tanzania, it means improved rural roads. In all our partner countries, it means a transparent process where the communities have a voice in these projects. The flow of money is scrutinized in a transparent manner, and all segments of society - with a special emphasis on women - will have a chance to participate and prosper in their local economies.

In Washington, I was pleased to see our friends in Congress again show their strong support for MCC’s mission to reduce poverty through economic growth. Legislation introduced by Chairman Donald Payne of the House Subcommittee on Africa, and a letter authored by Congressmen Adam Smith (D-WA) and Christopher Shays (R-CT), signed by 36 of their colleagues, place a premium on confronting global poverty with smart, results-based programs.

I had the opportunity to brief many of you following the MCC Board of Directors meeting held earlier this month. The meeting touched on a number of important subjects, including MCC programs in Georgia. I was also happy to announce the approval of Threshold programs in Rwanda and a Stage II (second) Threshold program with Albania. We look forward to public events marking the signing of these programs in mid-October.

As our work with our partners continues, we at MCC are proud to be delivering foreign assistance in the name of the American people in a way that conveys our trust and vision for a more prosperous world. MCC’s new logo, developed at the suggestion of the U.S. Congress and many of our stakeholders, helps convey this partnership. It is a partnership that has an impact in the lives of the poor in dozens of countries, and is a smart use of hard-earned taxpayer money.