Selamat Pagi! Good morning.
Thank you Governor Muhammad Zainul Majdi for hosting us here today and for NTB’s continued support for the Millennium Challenge Corporation and Millennium Challenge Account-Indonesia’s important work promoting economic prosperity for Indonesians.
I would also like to thank the MCC delegation, who travelled from around the world to see firsthand the impact joint MCC-Indonesia programs have had throughout Lombok.
I am delighted to have this opportunity to congratulate the Government of Nusa Tenggara Barat on its successful participation in the Millennium Challenge Compact with Indonesia.
The MCC Compact with Indonesia has provided a strong foundation for Indonesian government institutions to help millions of Indonesians lead healthier and more economically secure lives.
Today, we celebrate our partnership to improve procurement efficiency and effectiveness, to catalyze green growth, and to promote better health and nutrition in Indonesia.
The United States and Indonesia are committed to working together to increase economic opportunities and strengthen government services for Indonesians. This is why for the last five years, we have been proud to work with you to boost economic growth and fight poverty here in NTB.
We believe that a prosperous, democratic and secure Indonesia is good for the United States, good for the region, and good for the world.
Through the Millennium Challenge Corporation, the United States partnered with the Government of Indonesia and committed more than 5.5 trillion Rupiah over five years to promote economic growth and lift people out of poverty.
I would like to highlight some of the successes of our partnership:
- The Procurement Modernization Project has trained over 500 Indonesian professionals with the appropriate skills, systems, processes, and operating standards to reduce costs and achieve efficiency and transparency in high quality procurement.
- The Nutrition Project helped elevate stunting as a national priority in Indonesia. Together, we have trained over 16,000 service providers on proper feeding for pregnant mothers and infants.
- The Green Prosperity Project funded 67 Indonesian grantees to implement initiatives in renewable energy, peatland restoration, sustainable agriculture, and improved management of natural resources.
Here in NTB, you have demonstrated great commitment to this program, integrating MCC compact activities with your existing development plans.
As the program concludes, I know that many of you in this room are already working hard to build on these successes. We just heard a great example of how a pilot procurement service unit from the Procurement Modernization Project became one of the first Centers of Excellence for procurement in Indonesia. Another procurement service unit shared best practices with a neighboring unit and became a mentor.
These are excellent examples of how local and regional governments are rising to the challenge and owning these achievements and expanding that success by sharing with others, which is the key to making permanent progress.
The MCC compact has been implemented by Indonesians, for Indonesians. I am confident that you will sustain these efforts and build on the investments we have made together over the last five years. Thank you.
