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| Sunday, 31 October 2004 |
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SL applied for MCA assistance Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar handed over the proposals to obtain development assistance from the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) of the United States to US envoy Jeffrey J Lunstead on Friday. Minister Kadirgamar had been asked by the cabinet to co-ordinate the process of forwarding proposals to the MCA. The Millennium Challenge Account is an outright grant aid development assistance programme launched by the United States with a view to assisting specially selected developing countries. Sri Lanka was selected in May 2004 as one of the 16 countries eligible for such assistance, after a process of consultations, which began in 2003. The MCA ushers a new approach to global development assistance. The MCA will provide assistance for a process of sustained economic growth through investment in agriculture, education, private sector development and capacity building. It will reward performance. Countries will receive assistance based on their performance in governing justly, investing in their citizens and encouraging economic freedom. The MCA assistance will be based on genuine partnership between the donor and the recipient with recipient countries identifying and addressing the greatest barriers to their own development. Multi year project plans for achieving shared development objectives will be the bedrock of MCA assistance. The MCA is administered by the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), a new U.S. Government Corporation designed to support and manage the disbursement of funds from the Millennium Challenge Account. This concept paper has been prepared by the Department of Development Finance of the Ministry of Finance and Planning in line with guidelines indicated by the MCC. Sri Lanka's proposals emphasize rural development as a means for overall economic growth and have taken into account the importance of consultation with all stakeholders of the society in developing project ideas. The proposed projects by Sri Lanka will cover areas of irrigation, rural roads, water supply and sanitation, rural electrification, SMEs, apparel industry and capacity building. It is expected that on the basis of proposed project concepts, MCC and authorities in Sri Lanka will implement mutually agreed projects and further consultations are expected to be held for this purpose. |
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