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Media Advisory

MCC VP Travels to Cabo Verde to Mark Compact Closeout

For Immediate Release

November 27, 2017

WASHINGTON, D.C., November 27, 2017 – Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Vice President for the Department of Compact Operations Robert Blau will visit Cabo Verde this week to celebrate the accomplishments of the country’s five-year, $66 million compact.

During his visit, Vice President Blau will participate in the official closeout event with Cabo Verde Prime Minister Ulisses Correia e Silva and senior government officials to highlight compact accomplishments, visit project sites, and meet with local beneficiaries.

In Cabo Verde, severe water scarcity and uncertainty about land titles threatened to hold the nation back. MCC’s $66 million compact, signed in 2012 and implemented by the MCA - Cabo Verde, established policies, institutions, and infrastructure on which Cabo Verde, a U.S. maritime trade and security partner, can build a more prosperous future.

Through the $17.3 million Land Management for Investment Project, the Government of Cabo Verde established a single source of land rights and boundaries information on four, high-tourism islands, facilitating private investment across the islands. The $39.7 million Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Project established a financially sound and accountable institutions to deliver higher-quality water and sanitation services to Cabo Verdean households and businesses.

Below is the schedule of events, which are open to press.

Monday, November 27

Vice President Blau will visit São Vicente Island to meet with beneficiaries of the Social Access Fund, a component of the Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Project. The Social Access Fund facilitated connections to thousands of citizens across Cabo Verde, bringing water and sanitation into their homes for the first time ever, and saving them time and money.

He will then travel to areas covered by the Land Management for Investment Project, which worked to clarify the rights and boundaries of land owners on multiple islands. Before the project, transferring land titles could take 72 days or more. With MCC's support, transactions can now be completed in 3 days or less, opening the door for private investment and economic growth.

Tuesday, November 28

Vice President Blau will visit the Port of Praia, one of the major infrastructure investments of MCC’s first compact with Cabo Verde, and participate in other activities.

Wednesday, November 29

Vice President Blau will attend the inauguration ceremony of the works network extension from Praia City to the Municipality of São Domingos.

Later that day he will attend the official closeout event at the Government Palace. He will be joined by Cabo Verde Prime Minister Ulisses Correia e Silva, U.S. Ambassador to Cabo Verde Donald Heflin, Minister of Agriculture and the Environment Dr. Gilberto Silva, Minister of Infrastructure and Territorial Management Eunice Silva, Presidente da Câmara Municipal da Praia Dr. Óscar Santos, and Presidente da Câmara Municipal de São Domingos Dr. Clemente Delgado Garcia.

Learn more about MCC’s Cabo Verde Compact.

For more information on Vice President Blau’s visit to Cabo Verde, please contact Kate Pritchard at PritchardKM@mcc.gov.

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The Millennium Challenge Corporation is an independent U.S. Government agency working to reduce global poverty through economic growth. Created in 2004, MCC provides time-limited grants and assistance to poor countries that meet rigorous standards for good governance, from fighting corruption to respecting democratic rights. Learn more about MCC at www.mcc.gov.