Selection Process

To be a candidate for MCC program assistance, countries must

• Not exceed certain per-capita, annual income levels;
• Not be subject to any number of U.S. sanctions.

The World Bank sets the income levels annually in early July. A country must be classified as a low income country or lower middle-income country to be a candidate.

The MCC Chief Executive Officer submits a report to Congress that lists the candidate countries. By law, this report must be submitted to the appropriate congressional committees and published in the Federal Register not later than 90 days before the MCC Board selects compact eligible countries. This report is referred to as the annual Candidate Country Report.

The country selection criteria and methodology are the rules and measures by which the Board of Directors determines a country’s eligibility for MCC assistance.

In determining country eligibility, the Board considers:

• A country’s performance on the scorecard indicators;
• The opportunity to reduce poverty and generate economic growth within a country; and the
• Availability of funds.

In addition, for countries that are candidates for subsequent compact selection, the Board considers each country’s performance implementing its prior compact, including country progress toward achieving that compact’s results, the nature of the country partnership with MCC, and the degree to which the country has implemented the compact in accordance with MCC’s core policies and standards. When considering a country for a subsequent compact, the Board also takes into consideration evidence of improved scorecard policy performance and a commitment to sectoral reform. The types of additional information the Board considers beyond the scorecards can also be found in the Guide to Supplemental Information.

The MCC Chief Executive Officer submits a report to Congress that describes these criteria and the methodology. By law, this report must be submitted to the appropriate congressional committees and published in the Federal Register not later than 60 days before the MCC Board selects compact eligible countries. This report is referred to as the annual Selection Criteria and Methodology Report.

Public Comment

Each year MCC solicits and considers public comment for 30 days after publication of the selection criteria and methodology. The comment period for FY 2023 is now closed.

The Country Scorecard consolidates an individual country’s scores for each of the policy indicators MCC uses to determine eligibility for its assistance programs. Each country identified in the Candidate Country Report has a scorecard. MCC also produces scorecards for countries that are subject to international or U.S. sanctions, but do not exceed the per-capita income requirement. These scorecards rank countries against their income peers on 20 indicators measuring a commitment to just and democratic governance, investments in its people, and economic freedom.

Individual country scorecards are available by fiscal year in the Country Scorecard section and are also published as a Country Scorebook. A description of how MCC constructs the scorecard indicators can be found in MCC’s Guide to the Indicators.

The Board of Directors selects eligible countries for MCC program assistance, typically in December of each year.

In determining country eligibility, the Board considers three factors:

• A country’s policy performance;
• The opportunity to reduce poverty and generate economic growth within a country; and the
• Availability of funds.

The selected countries, if they agree to participate, then develop a compact proposal with MCC.