[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 41, Number 51 (Monday, December 26, 2005)]
[Pages 1898-1900]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks at a Swearing-In Ceremony for John J. Danilovich as Chief 
Executive Officer of the Millennium Challenge Corporation

December 20, 2005

    Thank you all. Thanks for the warm welcome. It's nice to be back 
here at the State Department. I'm glad to be with my friend, Condi Rice, 
who's doing a fabulous job as our Secretary of State. It's also good to 
be here with the Board and staff of the Millennium Challenge 
Corporation. And I'm proud to be here to congratulate the new Chief 
Executive Officer, Ambassador John Danilovich.
    This is a vital program for our country and for my administration, 
and that's why I've come. The MCC is an integral part of our strategy to 
fight poverty and to encourage economic development. And leading this 
organization requires a combination of idealism and managerial skill and 
diplomatic savvy and economic expertise. John Danilovich has those 
qualities. That's why I picked him, and that's why he's going to be a 
great executive leading this important corporation.
    I'm also proud to be standing up here with Irene, and I'm glad to be 
with his three children, J.C., Alice, and Alex, proud members of the 
Danilovich family. I appreciate Ambassador Negroponte being here today. 
Thank you, John. He's doing a fine job as the Director of National 
Intelligence. In order to defeat the enemy, we have got to have the best 
intelligence possible. Thanks for your leadership.
    Deputy Secretary Bob Kimmitt of the Treasury is with us. I see my 
friend, Mosbacher, here, from OPIC. Thanks for coming, Rob. Members of 
the administration too numerous to mention are here, and I want to thank 
the ambassadors, members of the diplomatic corps, Your Excellencies, 
thanks for being here today.
    America is founded on the belief that every life has dignity and 
every life has value, and we have long felt a special responsibility to 
help the less fortunate. For decades, our country sent aid to 
developing--to the developing world with the best of intentions, but we 
did not ask if we were getting the best of results. Too often, American 
aid was

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squandered by inept leaders, pocketed by corrupt officials, and 
swallowed up by rampant inflation. Without insisting on accountability 
in exchange for generosity, we were not serving the people of the 
developing countries, and we were not serving the American taxpayers.
    And so my administration decided to do something about it. We 
decided to insist upon results. Almost 2 years ago, we launched the 
Millennium Challenge Account as an entirely new way to provide aid. The 
MCA is based on clear principle: Countries that seek our aid must 
demonstrate a record of performance. I don't think that's too much to 
ask on behalf of the taxpayer, nor is it too much to demand on behalf of 
people living in the countries we're trying to help.
    Specifically, countries seeking MCA assistance have got to show 
results in three key areas. They must govern justly; that makes sense. 
They must invest in their people; that's a wise use of money. And they 
must encourage economic freedom.
    Poor countries that prove a commitment to these sound policies are 
eligible to apply for an MCC compact. That's an interesting word, 
``compact.'' It means we're working together. It means these countries 
have to design a proposal that will reduce national poverty and 
stimulate economic growth. We consider each proposal through a rigorous 
process--sometimes too slow and too rigorous--and then award compacts to 
countries with wise proposals that include a way to measure results. By 
requiring countries to create and implement their own strategies, they 
have a stake in their own success, and we're giving Americans reason to 
be confident as we spend their money.
    The Millennium Challenge Account has the potential to transform the 
way the world delivers aid. So far, we have signed compacts with five 
nations and committed to deliver nearly a billion dollars in assistance. 
That money is making life-changing difference in some of the poorest 
countries in the world. In Madagascar, where 80 percent of the people 
live on less than $2 a day, the MCA compact is helping to modernize the 
national land registry, which will help secure property rights for more 
than 60,000 families. In Honduras and Nicaragua, MCA compacts are 
helping farmers improve their business plans to grow more profitable 
crops and to get the crops to the markets faster. In Georgia, where I 
visited last spring, an MCA compact is helping to rebuild a gas pipeline 
that will provide reliable heat and electricity for more than a million 
people. And in Cape Verde, off the Atlantic coast of Africa, an MCA 
compact is funding the construction of new roads and bridges that will 
connect some of the nation's key islands. These small nations are making 
big commitments, and America is proud to stand by their side.
    We support people who fight corruption. We support people who invest 
in the health and education of their children. We support people who 
understand that economic freedom is the way to improve the lives of 
their citizens.
    We have more to do to fight poverty. I believe central to our 
foreign policy must be, ``To whom much is given, much is required.'' 
That's why we're leading the fight against HIV/AIDS. That's why we're 
feeding the hungry. And we're going to continue to help eradicate 
poverty around the world. John Danilovich is the right person to take on 
this part of our efforts to fight poverty. He knows how to set 
priorities. He knows how to solve problems. He knows how to cut through 
bureaucracy.
    In his first 6 weeks on the job, he has taken steps to streamline 
the administration at the Corporation and to expedite the application 
process for eligible countries. John and the MCC Board will now consider 
the applications of nearly two dozen countries that were recently 
selected as eligible for compacts. Many of these countries have made 
good progress on their proposals. I've asked John to complete and sign 
several more compacts in the coming months.
    It's a good program. Let's get it moving, and let's implement it for 
the sake of eliminating poverty around the world. The success of the MCA 
is reinforcing our belief that lifting nations out of poverty requires 
partnership, not paternalism. In the 21st century, America is willing to 
be a partner with every nation that works to advance the prosperity, 
equality, and liberty of its people.
    This is a commitment I've carried across continents from the United 
Nations in New

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York to Europe, to South America, to Africa and Asia. It is a commitment 
I have urged leaders of other developed nations to adopt, by insisting 
on measurable results for their own foreign aid. It is a commitment that 
I urge the United States Congress to continue to support by funding our 
requests for MCC funding. And it is a commitment that I am honored to 
entrust to Ambassador John Danilovich as he becomes the second Chief 
Executive Officer of the Millennium Challenge Corporation.
    Congratulations, John. Thanks for your willingness to serve.

Note: The President spoke at 10:06 a.m. in the Benjamin Franklin Room at 
the State Department. In his remarks, he referred to Robert A. 
Mosbacher, Jr., president and chief executive officer, Overseas Private 
Investment Corporation (OPIC). The transcript released by the Office of 
the Press Secretary also included the remarks of Ambassador Danilovich.