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Regional Investments

People, goods and services move across borders—and so should MCC’s investments. Developing countries can grow faster, create more jobs, and attract greater investments when they are part of dynamic regional markets. Enhanced regional integration can connect countries through foundational infrastructure—such as power, water, and roads—that unleash economic growth.

MCC is an important U.S. vehicle to unlock this potential.

Regional integration compacts can take MCC’s work to the next level, creating new opportunities for achieving larger-scale reductions in poverty.

New Authority

In 2018, the AGOA and MCA Modernization Act granted MCC new authority to more effectively make cross-border and other regional investments that address economic challenges. These regional investments will include projects that extend beyond borders to facilitate trade and investment and expand regional markets for larger-scale impact on poverty reduction. These new programs will be memorialized in Concurrent Compacts for Regional Investment.

This authority further enables MCC to be a valuable strategic tool for the U.S. to promote trade and investment. Regional compacts can help create better integrated markets for trade, investment, and economic growth by supporting economies of scale, access to larger markets and more efficient production.

Eligibility

Eligibility for any MCC investment is decided by MCC’s Board of Directors. Eligible countries must:

  • be current MCC partners with existing compacts, or otherwise pass MCC eligibility criteria;
  • have contiguous borders; and
  • demonstrate a continued commitment to just and democratic governance, investments in its people and economic freedom as measured by policy indicators on the MCC scorecard.

MCC is exploring cross-border investments in power and transport sectors that are critical to increased regional integration and vital to bringing countries into global value chains.

Clear opportunity exists in Africa, home to many of the world’s fastest growing economies and to one quarter of the world’s consumers by 2030.

Eligible countries that are selected to receive a concurrent compact, will benefit from MCC’s support of expanded regional markets for trade and new investment opportunities – also benefitting American companies looking to expand their businesses abroad.

Business Opportunities

MCC plays a significant role in promoting trade and investment. Major MCC projects have included expansions to the main seaports of Benin and Cabo Verde and roads for commerce in Ghana, Mozambique, and Senegal. The agency has invested more than $6 billion in trade-related assistance to developing countries.

Our programs help countries enact market-based reforms and innovative public-private partnerships that draw in and unlock private capital, reducing risk and improving investment environments to create new business and trade opportunities.

MCC also seeks to catalyze economic growth through blended finance, the merging of public and private funds to mobilize additional private capital for the public good.

MCC coordinates with the U.S. State Department, the U.S. Trade Representative, USAID, and other agencies to complement and support their efforts to expand Africa’s capacity for trade and investment.