Lima, Peru The United States and Peru today signed a   two-year, $35.6 million Millennium Challenge Corporation threshold program   agreement to help the Government of Peru improve its performance on MCCs   Control of Corruption and Immunization Rates indicators. Specifically, the   program is designed to increase immunization rates of rural children against   diseases such as measles, diphtheria, pertussis and tetanus in eight targeted   regions and to assist Peru’s Ministry of Health in   strengthening information and vaccination management systems. The program will   also help Peru combat corruption by working   with the judicial branch, law enforcement, the ombudsman and controllers   offices and civil society organizations to improve internal controls, as well as   analyze and simplify administrative processes to reduce opportunities for   corruption.

I congratulate the government and the people of Peru for   bringing forth this exciting program, said MCC CEO   Ambassador John Danilovich. Investing   in health and fighting corruption are critical tools in reducing poverty. MCC   looks forward to working in partnership with Peru to improve   the policy environment necessary for poverty reduction and sustainable economic   growth and to ensure that their children have the opportunity to lead healthy   lives. Ambassador Danilovich added, We   thank our colleagues at USAID and the U.S. Embassy in Peru   led by Ambassador Michael McKinley for their efforts in bringing this program to   fruition.

As part of   MCCs overall mandate to reduce poverty through economic growth, the MCC   threshold program is designed to assist countries that are on the threshold of   eligibility for large-scale Millennium Challenge Account grants, or compacts.  Eligibility for a compact is based on a countrys score on 17 non-U.S.  Government indicators of policy performance in three categories Ruling Justly,  Investing in People and Economic Freedom. Threshold program assistance is used   to help countries address the specific policy areas where a country scores below   its peers.

The United States Agency for International Development   will be the U.S. government   agency responsible for administering Perus threshold program. The U.S.  Department of Justice will also implement a component of the   program.

To date, the U.S. has signed nearly $400 million in MCC   threshold program assistance in eighteen countries: Albania, Burkina   Faso, Guyana, Indonesia, Jordan, Kenya, Kyrgyz Republic, Malawi, Moldova, Niger, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, So Tom and Prncipe, Tanzania, Uganda, Ukraine, and Zambia.

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Millennium Challenge   Corporation, a U.S. government corporation designed   to work with developing countries, 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. For more information, please   visit www.mcc.gov.