GAO critical of foreign aid process

[The Straight Story]

GAO critical of foreign aid process
By Shawn Zeller
[e-mail]

The Millennium Challenge Corporation should seek to provide more transparent information about how it selects which foreign countries are eligible for development aid, according to a recent Government Accountability Office report.

The MCC, established by Congress in 2004, is a federal agency that distributes foreign aid to poor countries that demonstrate a commitment to ruling justly, investing in people and economic freedom.

In April, Madagascar--an island nation off the coast of Africa--signed the first compact to receive MCC assistance. It will receive $110 million over four years to advance land titling, financial sector reforms and agricultural production. Four other countries are in the middle of compact negotiations with the agency.

Countries are evaluated using criteria set by nongovernmental organizations. For example, in the "investing in people" category, countries' immunization rates are assessed by the World Health Organization. For "ruling justly," the World Bank Institute evaluates anti-corruption efforts. For "economic freedom," the Heritage Foundation rates trade policies. In each of these categories, MCC monitors at least four indicators and sets quantitative criteria to judge countries. Countries must have scores higher than the median on at least half the indicators, as well as a score above the median in fighting corruption to be eligible for aid.


http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0405/042905sz1.htm