84374 Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 248 / Monday, December 28, 2020 / Notices 

1Available at https://www.mcc.gov/resources/ 

doc/report-selection-criteria-methodology-fy21. 

Affected Public: Private Sector— 

Businesses or other for-profits; 

Individuals and Households. 

Total Estimated Number of 

Respondents: 22,550. 

Total Estimated Number of 

Responses: 22,550. 

Total Estimated Annual Time Burden: 

6,885 hours. 

Total Estimated Annual Other Costs 

Burden: $0. 

Authority: 44 U.S.C. 3507(a)(1)(D). 

Dated: December 18, 2020. 

Anthony May, 

Management and Program Analyst. 

[FR Doc. 2020–28571 Filed 12–23–20; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE P 

MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE 

CORPORATION 

[MCC FR 20–10] 

Report on the Selection of Eligible 

Countries for Fiscal Year 2021 

AGENCY: Millennium Challenge 

Corporation. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: This report is provided in 

accordance with the Millennium 

Challenge Act of 2003, as amended. The 

report is set forth in full below. 

Authority: Section 608(d)(2) of the 

Millennium Challenge Act of 2003, as 

amended, 22 U.S.C. 7707(d)(2) (the Act). 

Dated: December 18, 2020. 

Brian Finkelstein, 

Acting VP/General Counsel and Corporate 

Secretary. 

Report on the Selection of Eligible 

Countries for Fiscal Year 2021 

Summary 

This report is provided in accordance 

with section 608(d)(1) of the 

Millennium Challenge Act of 2003, as 

amended (the Act) (22 U.S.C. 

7707(d)(1)). 

The Act authorizes the provision of 

assistance under section 605 of the Act 

(22 U.S.C. 7704) to countries that enter 

into compacts with the United States to 

support policies and programs that 

advance the progress of such countries 

in achieving lasting poverty reduction 

through economic growth, and are in 

furtherance of the Act. The Act requires 

the Millennium Challenge Corporation 

(MCC) to determine the countries that 

will be eligible to receive assistance for 

the fiscal year, based on their 

demonstrated commitment to just and 

democratic governance, economic 

freedom, and investing in their people, 

as well as on the opportunity to reduce 

poverty through economic growth in the 

country. The Act also requires the 

submission of reports to appropriate 

congressional committees and the 

publication of notices in the Federal 

Register that identify, among other 

things: 

1. The countries that are ‘‘candidate 

countries’’ for assistance for fiscal year 

(FY) 2021 based on their per-capita 

income levels and their eligibility to 

receive assistance under U.S. law, and 

countries that would be candidate 

countries, but for specified legal 

prohibitions on assistance (section 

608(a) of the Act (22 U.S.C. 7707(a))); 

2. The criteria and methodology that 

the Board of Directors of MCC (the 

Board) used to measure and evaluate the 

policy performance of the ‘‘candidate 

countries’’ consistent with the 

requirements of section 607 of the Act 

in order to determine ‘‘eligible 

countries’’ from among the ‘‘candidate 

countries’’ (section 608(b) of the Act (22 

U.S.C. 7707(b))); and 

3. The list of countries determined by 

the Board to be ‘‘eligible countries’’ for 

FY 2021, with justification for eligibility 

determination and selection for compact 

negotiation, including with which of the 

eligible countries the Board will seek to 

enter into compacts (section 608(d) of 

the Act (22 U.S.C. 7707(d))). 

This is the third of the abovedescribed reports by MCC for FY 2021. 

It identifies countries determined by the 

Board to be eligible under section 607 

of the Act (22 U.S.C. 7706) for FY 2021 

with which the MCC will seek to enter 

into compacts under section 609 of the 

Act (22 U.S.C. 7708), as well as the 

justification for such decisions. The 

report also identifies countries selected 

by the Board to receive assistance under 

MCC’s threshold program pursuant to 

section 616 of the Act (22 U.S.C. 7715). 

Eligible Countries 

The Board met on December 15, 2020 

to select those eligible countries with 

which the United States, through MCC, 

will seek to enter into a Millennium 

Challenge Compact pursuant to section 

607 of the Act (22 U.S.C. 7706). The 

Board selected the following eligible 

country for such assistance for FY 2021: 

Sierra Leone. The Board also selected 

the following previously selected 

countries for compact assistance for FY 

2021: Benin, Burkina Faso, Coˆte 

d’Ivoire, Malawi, Mozambique, Niger, 

Timor-Leste, and Tunisia. 

Criteria 

In accordance with the Act and with 

the ‘‘Report on the Criteria and 

Methodology for Determining the 

Eligibility of Candidate Countries for 

Millennium Challenge Account 

Assistance in Fiscal Year 2021’’ 

formally submitted to Congress on 

September 15, 2020, selection was based 

primarily on a country’s overall 

performance in three broad policy 

categories: Ruling Justly, Encouraging 

Economic Freedom, and Investing in 

People. The Board relied, to the fullest 

extent possible, upon transparent and 

independent indicators to assess 

countries’ policy performance and 

demonstrated commitment in these 

three broad policy areas. The Board 

compared countries’ performance on the 

indicators relative to their income-level 

peers, evaluating them in comparison to 

either the group of countries with a GNI 

per capita equal to or less than $1,945, 

or the group with a GNI per capita 

between $1,946 and $4,045. 

The criteria and methodology used to 

assess countries on the annual 

scorecards are outlined in the ‘‘Report 

on the Criteria and Methodology for 

Determining the Eligibility of Candidate 

Countries for Millennium Challenge 

Account Assistance for Fiscal Year 

2021.’’ 1 Scorecards reflecting each 

country’s performance on the indicators 

are available on MCC’s website at 

https://www.mcc.gov/who-we-select/ 

scorecards. 

The Board also considered whether 

any adjustments should be made for 

data gaps, data lags, or recent events 

since the indicators were published, as 

well as strengths or weaknesses in 

particular indicators. Where 

appropriate, the Board took into account 

additional quantitative and qualitative 

information, such as evidence of a 

country’s commitment to fighting 

corruption, investments in human 

development outcomes, or poverty rates. 

In keeping with legislative directives, 

the Board also considered the 

opportunity to reduce poverty and 

promote economic growth in a country, 

in light of the overall information 

available, as well as the availability of 

appropriated funds. 

The Board sees the selection decision 

as an annual opportunity to determine 

where MCC funds can be most 

effectively used to support poverty 

reduction through economic growth in 

relatively well-governed, poor countries. 

The Board carefully considers the 

appropriate nature of each country 

partnership—on a case-by-case basis— 

based on factors related to poverty 

reduction through economic growth, the 

sustainability of MCC’s investments, 

and the country’s ability to attract and 


tkelley on DSKBCP9HB2PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 248 / Monday, December 28, 2020 / Notices 84375 

2Available at https://www.mcc.gov/resources/ 

doc/guide-to-supplemental-information. 

3Available at https://www.mcc.gov/who-weselect/indicators/doing-business-indicators-fy21. 4Available at https://www.mcc.gov/who-weselect/suspension-or-termination. 

leverage public and private resources in 

support of development. 

This was the third year the Board 

considered the eligibility of countries 

for concurrent compacts. In addition to 

the considerations for compact 

eligibility detailed above, the Board 

considered whether a country being 

considered for a concurrent compact is 

making considerable and demonstrable 

progress in implementing the terms of 

its existing compact. 

This was the twelfth year the Board 

considered the eligibility of countries 

for subsequent compacts, as permitted 

under section 609(l) of the Act. MCC’s 

engagement with partner countries is 

not open-ended, and the Board is 

deliberate when selecting countries for 

follow-on partnerships, particularly 

regarding the higher bar applicable to 

subsequent compact countries. In 

making these selection decisions, the 

Board considered—in addition to the 

criteria outlined above—the country’s 

performance implementing its first 

compact, including the nature of the 

country’s partnership with MCC, the 

degree to which the country has 

demonstrated a commitment and 

capacity to achieve program results, and 

the degree to which the country has 

implemented the compact in accordance 

with MCC’s core policies and standards. 

To the greatest extent possible, these 

factors were assessed using pre-existing 

monitoring and evaluation targets and 

regular quarterly reporting. This 

information was supplemented with 

direct surveys and consultation with 

MCC staff responsible for compact 

implementation, monitoring, and 

evaluation. MCC published a Guide to 

Supplemental Information 2 and a 

related web page 3 regarding how MCC 

assesses performance on the Access to 

Credit, Business Start-Up, and Land 

Rights and Access indicators on the 

scorecard, in order to increase 

transparency about the type of 

supplemental information the Board 

uses to assess a country’s policy 

performance. The Board also considered 

a country’s commitment to further 

sector reform, as well as evidence of 

improved scorecard policy performance. 

In addition, this is the fifth year 

where the Board considered an explicit 

higher bar for those countries close to 

the upper end of the candidate pool, 

looking closely in such cases at a 

country’s access to development 

financing, the nature of poverty in the 

country, and its policy performance. 

Countries Newly Selected for Compact 

Assistance 

Using the criteria described above, 

one candidate country under section 

606(a) of the Act (22 U.S.C. 7705(a) was 

newly selected for assistance under 

section 607 of the Act (22 U.S.C. 7706): 

Sierra Leone. In accordance with section 

609(k) of the Act, no candidate 

countries were newly selected to 

explore development of a concurrent 

compact program under section 607 of 

the Act (22 U.S.C. 7706). 

Sierra Leone: Sierra Leone has been 

an engaged and committed partner in 

the threshold program, consistently 

demonstrating a willingness to adopt 

challenging reforms. It is also a 

remarkable example of the ‘‘MCC 

Effect’’, having strengthened its 

scorecard performance substantially 

through sustained reform efforts 

spanning two administrations. Sierra 

Leone passes the scorecard for the 

second year in a row in FY 2021, 

passing 13 indicators overall with strong 

performance on both the Democratic 

Rights and Control of Corruption ‘‘hard 

hurdles.’’ The country also took steps to 

strengthen its investment climate this 

year, including acceding to the New 

York Convention on the Recognition 

and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral 

Awards. By selecting Sierra Leone for a 

compact, MCC will support the 

government’s efforts to strengthen 

economic growth to reduce poverty. 

Countries Selected to Continue Compact 

Development 

Eight of the countries selected for 

compact assistance for FY 2021 were 

previously selected for FY 2020. 

Malawi, Mozambique, Timor-Leste, and 

Tunisia were selected to continue 

developing bilateral compacts. Benin, 

Burkina Faso, Coˆte d’Ivoire, and Niger 

were selected to continue developing 

concurrent compacts for the purpose of 

regional integration. Selection of these 

countries for FY 2021 was based on 

their continued or improved policy 

performance since their prior selection. 

Countries Selected To Receive 

Threshold Program Assistance 

The Board selected Kiribati to receive 

threshold program assistance. 

Kiribati: Kiribati offers MCC the 

opportunity to engage with a country 

that faces significant challenges to 

economic growth. Kiribati is a strong 

scorecard performer, having 

consistently met the scorecard criteria, 

and passes 13 of 20 indicators in FY 

2021. It passes the Control of Corruption 

hard hurdle and demonstrates some of 

the highest democratic rights scores of 

any MCC candidate country. Kiribati 

has been an important United States 

partner in the central Pacific since a 

treaty of friendship was signed in 1979, 

and this threshold program will build 

upon that relationship. 

Countries Selected To Continue 

Developing Threshold Programs 

The Board selected Ethiopia, The 

Gambia, and Kenya to continue 

developing threshold programs. 

Selection of these countries for FY 2021 

was based on their continued 

performance since their prior selection. 

Ongoing Review of Partner Countries’ 

Policy Performance 

The Board emphasized the need for 

all partner countries to maintain or 

improve their policy performance. If it 

is determined during compact 

implementation that a country has 

demonstrated a significant policy 

reversal, MCC can hold it accountable 

by applying MCC’s Suspension and 

Termination Policy.4

[FR Doc. 2020–28491 Filed 12–21–20; 4:15 pm] 

BILLING CODE 9211–03–P 

NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND 

SPACE ADMINISTRATION 

[Notice (20–101)] 

NASA Advisory Council; Technology, 

Innovation and Engineering Committee 

Meeting AGENCY: National 

Aeronautics and Space Administration. 

ACTION: Notice of meeting. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the 

Federal Advisory Committee Act, as 

amended, the National Aeronautics and 

Space Administration (NASA) 

announces a meeting of the Technology, 

Innovation and Engineering Committee 

of the NASA Advisory Council (NAC). 

This Committee reports to the NAC. 

DATES: Wednesday, January 27, 2021, 

11:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m., Eastern Time. 

ADDRESSES: Meeting will be virtual 

only. See dial-in and Webex information 

below under ‘‘Supplementary 

Information.’’ 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. 

Mike Green, Designated Federal Officer, 

Space Technology Mission Directorate, 

NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC 

20546, via email at g.m.green@nasa.gov 

or 202–358–4710 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: As noted 

above, this meeting will be available 

telephonically or Webex only. If dialing 


tkelley on DSKBCP9HB2PROD with NOTICES