16 June 2006
The Gambia Suspended from Millennium Challenge Compact Program, June 16, 2006(MCC cites human rights abuses, actions inconsistent with selection criteria)
By Charles W. Corey
Washington File Staff Writer
Washington -- The board of directors of the U.S. Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) suspended the Gambia's eligibility for MCC assistance June 16, citing a pattern of actions inconsistent with MCC's selection criteria.
The board based its decision on documented evidence of human rights abuses in the country and increased restrictions on political rights, civil liberties and press freedom by the government, as well as worsening economic policies and diminishing anti-corruption efforts, an MCC statement said. To support its decision, MCC considered reports from several organizations, including Freedom House, the Heritage Foundation, the World Economic Forum, the Economist Intelligence Unit and the U.S. Department of State.
"The board's decision was necessary, given the disturbing pattern of deteriorating conditions in eight of the 16 policy categories used to evaluate all candidate countries, including the Gambia," said Ambassador John Danilovich, MCC's chief executive officer.
"Continued participation in the Millennium Challenge program requires our partner countries to maintain good policies and is contingent upon adherence to fundamental principles necessary to make progress in their own development," Danilovich said. "MCC would welcome the opportunity to consider the Gambia's reinstatement after the government has taken tangible and significant actions to address the areas of decline and embrace political and economic reforms."
The board annually selects countries for Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) eligibility from a pool of candidate countries based on each country's demonstrated commitment in three broad policy categories -- "ruling justly," "investing in people" and "promoting economic freedom" -- as measured by performance on 16 independent policy indicators within their income peer group.
The Gambia was notified in November 2005 that it was eligible for MCA funding, according to the MCC statement, and only preliminary discussions about the program had been undertaken prior to the June 16 announcement. (See related article.)
Under MCC's policy on suspension and termination of assistance, the board may reinstate eligibility for a country if it determines that the country has taken corrective action or has demonstrated a sufficient commitment to correcting each condition for which eligibility for assistance was suspended.
The Millennium Challenge Corporation, a United States government corporation designed to work with some of the poorest countries in the world, bases its assistance on the principle that aid is most effective when it reinforces good governance, economic freedom and investments in people that promote economic growth and elimination of extreme poverty.
For additional information, see Millennium Challenge Account.
