Press Releases

MCC CEO Ambassador Danilovich to Travel to Nicaragua

September 19, 2006

Ambassador John Danilovich, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), will travel to Nicaragua September 20-22.

Ambassador Danilovich plans to meet with senior government officials, MCA-Nicaragua Foundation representatives, and members of civil society and the private sector. Nicaragua is presently implementing a $175 million, five-year development Compact under the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA).

Implementation of Nicaragua’s $175 million Compact has been underway since late Spring. Ambassador Danilovich plans a keynote address at a western Nicaragua investment summit on September 21. Also during his stay, Ambassador Danilovich plans inaugurate property titling and rural business development implementation activities.  Nicaragua’s MCA program is focused on creating a regional engine for economic growth by transforming the rural business sector in the in the departments of León and Chinandega.
 
The Compact, designed by Nicaraguans, will reduce poverty and spur economic growth by funding projects that reduce transportation costs to regional and international markets through improved road links. The Compact is also expected to help boost wages and profits from farming and related enterprises in the region, create thousands of jobs, and increase investment by strengthen private property rights.

To date, MCC has signed and approved Compacts totaling more than $2.1 billion with nine countries: Armenia; Benin; Cape Verde; Georgia; Ghana; Honduras; Madagascar; Nicaragua; and Vanuatu.  Eligibility for MCC Compact assistance is based on a country's commitment to policies that promote political and economic freedom, investments in education and health, control of corruption, and respect for civil liberties and the rule of law, as measured by 16 policy indicators which have a demonstrated link to poverty reduction and growth. 

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Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), a U.S. government corporation designed to work with some of the poorest countries in the world, is based on the principle that aid is most effective when it reinforces sound political, economic, and social policies that promote poverty reduction through economic growth.