WASHINGTON (July 29, 2024) – Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) CEO Alice Albright traveled to Indonesia to celebrate progress on the launch of the $649 million Indonesia Infrastructure and Finance Compact. This MCC grant aims to improve both the quantity and quality of Indonesian infrastructure, as well as increase access to financing for small and medium enterprises.
“MCC’s partnership with Indonesia spans nearly two decades, and this latest compact program brings our total investment in the country to over $1 billion,” said CEO Albright. “Through this latest collaboration, I am excited that Indonesians will be able to strengthen and expand their businesses and safely access new marketplaces.”
During the visit, CEO Albright, alongside U.S. Ambassador-Designate to Indonesia Kamala Lakhdhir, celebrated the signing of a grant agreement with the Indonesia Infrastructure Finance (IIF) that will catalyze blended finance options for the public and private sectors to deliver and sustain more public infrastructure projects. She also met with Indonesia’s Vice Minister of Finance Thomas Djiwandono and Minister of National Development Planning Suharso Monoarfa, deepening the mutual commitment to improve the country’s financial and lending environment.
Albright also traveled to Riau Islands Province to tour the Kuala Riau Port, which is under consideration for rehabilitation as part of the MCC partnership. If selected, this program would increase passenger and cargo transport from the Kuala Riau Port to other islands and nearby Singapore. Meeting with local government officials, businesses, and residents, she gained insight into the ways port facility upgrades will increase tourism and make transport easier for the community.
The culmination of CEO Albright’s trip was a fireside discussion with Indonesian women leaders in government and business about financial inclusion and entrepreneurship. The panel focused on the importance of women in the Indonesian economy and on how digitalization can support women-owned small and medium enterprises.
MCC’s Indonesia Infrastructure and Finance Compact is expected to launch this year on September 5. The $649 million grant, combined with an additional $49 million contribution from the Government of Indonesia, aims to improve access to finance for the country’s transport and logistics infrastructure and small and medium enterprises, especially those owned by women. The grant follows a $55 million Threshold Program in 2006 that implemented a national immunization strategy, built the capacity of health care workers, and reduced corruption. This was followed by the $474 million MCC-Indonesia Compact focused on improving public procurement, clean energy deployment, and nutrition, which concluded in 2018.
The Millennium Challenge Corporation is an independent U.S. government development agency working to reduce global poverty through economic growth. Created in 2004, MCC provides time-limited grants that pair investments in infrastructure with policy and institutional reforms to countries that meet rigorous standards for good governance, fighting corruption and respecting democratic rights.
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