Kenya Signs $12.7 Million MCC Grant To Combat Corruption in Public Procurement

Fact Sheet

Nairobi, Kenya— Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the Millennium Challenge Corporation, Rodney Bent, today witnessed the signing of an MCC Threshold Program agreement between the United States and Kenya. The two-year $12.7 million initiative focuses on reducing opportunities for corruption in public procurement. U.S. Ambassador to Kenya Michael Ranneberger, Kenyan Financial Secretary Mutua Kilaka, and MCC’s Vice President for Policy and International Relations Maureen Harrington also observed the signing. Kenyan Assistant Minister for Finance Peter Kenneth and U.S. Agency for International Development Mission Director Steve Haykin signed the agreement.

“Fighting corruption is an essential component in reducing poverty because corruption undermines all other efforts to stimulate growth and spread opportunity,” said Deputy CEO Rodney Bent. “Congratulations to the people and government of Kenya for their ambitious, results-oriented program to root out corruption and encourage investment. We look forward to building on our strong partnership during implementation of this initiative.”

The United States Agency for International Development will oversee implementation of the Threshold program on behalf of MCC. Mr. Bent added, “We thank our colleagues at USAID and the U.S. Embassy in Kenya led by Ambassador Ranneberger for their efforts in bringing this program forward.”

MCC’s Threshold Program is designed to assist countries that are on the “threshold” of Millennium Challenge Account eligibility for larger grant assistance called Compacts. Threshold Program assistance is used to help countries address the specific policy weaknesses indicated by their scores on the policy measurements that are central to Compact eligibility. Kenya is currently not eligible for Compact assistance because of its performance on the Control of Corruption indicator, one of 16 criteria used by MCC in selecting countries to participate in the Compact program. A passing score on the Control of Corruption Indicator is mandatory for Compact eligibility.

Attached is a fact sheet with further details about Kenya’s Threshold program.

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