Two new threshold programs were approved late last week for Ukraine and the Philippines, both of which target corruption.According to the MCC, the Philippines' $21m, 2 year program will:
reduce corruption by strengthening the Office of the Ombudsman and strengthening enforcement within three areas of the Department of Finance (DOF) -- the Revenue Integrity Protection Service (RIPS), the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), and the Bureau of Customs (BOC).
Likewise, Ukraine's $45m, 2 year program aims to:
reduce corruption in the public sector through strengthening civil society's monitoring and exposure of public corruption, reforming the judiciary, increasing government monitoring and enforcement of ethical and administrative standards, streamlining and enforcing regulations and combating corruption in higher education.
Including these two programs, the MCC has so far approved threshold funding for 8 countries worth a total of approximately $180m. It bears emphasis that in all cases but one (Burkina Faso), the grants have focused on anti-corruption initiatives.
