MCC’s commitment to global poverty reduction is firmly rooted in economic growth, good policy and governance, country ownership, data and analysis, strong results measurement, transparency and accountability. MCC’s poverty reduction work continues to advance effective and innovative development practices and partnerships.
A Strategy for MCC’s Future
MCC was created in 2004 to pioneer a new approach to poverty reduction—firmly grounded in the best evidence and aimed at expanding the frontiers of development effectiveness. More than a decade later, MCC has a track record that validates the efficacy of this model, but it also has learned, and adapted to, many important lessons along the way. In 2016, MCC released a strategy for its future—NEXT—that charts a course for deepening and expanding impact and meeting the challenges of the new landscape of global poverty and development. It lays out new directions, five specific goals, and priority actions that MCC will pursue, building on its proven model and founding principles. By following this strategy, MCC will seek to achieve greater leverage and results from the use of its resources, partner consistently and catalytically with the private sector and other key development actors, and continue to drive innovations in development effectiveness in the development community.
Open Government and Transparency
MCC is widely recognized for its institutional commitment to transparency, as evidenced by its consistently high ranking among the world’s top donors and within the U.S. government by Publish What You Fund. In FY2016, Publish What You Fund’s Aid Transparency Index ranked MCC as the most transparent U.S. Government agency and the second most transparent donor globally. MCC also received the highest score of all federal agencies measured in Results for America's 2016 Federal Invest in What Works Index. This Index showcases how federal agencies are currently using data and evidence to drive budget, policy and management decisions, and ultimately to improve lives.
Smart Aid Series
MCC’s Smart Aid Series was launched in FY2016 as a platform to engage development community stakeholders for discussions and to share ideas, best practices, lessons learned and innovative approaches across a range of development topics. With the support of a host of expert panelists participating in public events held at MCC, members of civil society, the private sector, academia, nongovernmental organizations, think tanks and other U.S. Government agencies came together for meaningful and interactive discussions on gender, data and development, water and sanitation, evidence-based policy reform, and partnerships. The Smart Aid Series aims to foster greater collaboration and effectively advance aid to reduce poverty through economic growth.
Investing in Africa’s Youth
Africa’s Promise is an MCC initiative to empower African youth by providing internship opportunities supporting the implementation of MCC compact programs across Africa. Approximately 60 percent of Africa’s total population is below the age of 35. Interns will learn technical skills, leadership skills and project management best practices – including financial and public sector management – in the local country context while helping to advance MCC’s mission to reduce poverty through economic growth. Interns will support the large-scale development projects that make up MCC-funded compact programs and get exposure to targeted professional development and networking opportunities in both the public and private sectors.