Casey Dunning Davis: How Did MCC Survive the DOGE-pocalypse – and What Comes Next?
High Energy PlanetShow Notes
Energy for Growth Hub’s Casey Dunning Davis joins host Katie Auth to discuss how the Millennium Challenge Corporation (mostly) escaped being DOGEd, where it excels in international development, and where it falls short. Listen as Casey and Katie discuss how the agency’s mandate and portfolio are changing to match the political moment, and whether MCC could be the most powerful tool to strengthen electric utilities in emerging economies.
About the Guest: Casey Dunning Davis is the US Foreign Policy Director at the Energy for Growth Hub, where she leads work on advancing US policy for more impactful global energy investments. She previously spent nearly a decade as Director of Results and Learning at the Millennium Challenge Corporation. Before MCC, she was a senior policy analyst at the Center for Global Development, focusing on US development policy and aid effectiveness.
"I don't know another donor agency that, as a matter of course, has this level of analytical firepower to understand where and in what to invest." - Casey Dunning Davis, Season 5 of High Energy Planet Covered in This Episode: MCC 101: Casey explains what makes the Millennium Challenge Corporation different from USAID and other development agencies: debt-free grants, a laser focus on economic growth, and compacts co-designed and co-funded with partner governments.
How MCC Survived: Casey describes the fear inside MCC as USAID was dismantled, and why its hyper-selectivity and ability to account for every dollar helped it stay standing.
Energy Takes Over: Katie and Casey look at how MCC's portfolio has shifted under the Trump administration, with energy now accounting for over half of all funding.
Why Utilities Matter: Katie explains why failing utilities are the biggest barrier to functional power systems, and Casey makes the case that MCC's large grants and up-front reform requirements give it unusual leverage.
Lessons from Malawi and Ghana: Casey uses two case studies to show how MCC holds partner governments to their commitments and walks away when they don't follow through.
Liberia and the Case for Focus: Casey argues MCC should target two or three utility problems rather than try to fix everything.
After the Compact: Casey shares what she no longer believes: that a single five-year compact can transform a sector on its own.
Resources: Learn more about the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC)
Casey cites Nepal as the largest country co-investment to date. Learn more about the Nepal Compact
Casey discusses the Malawi Compact, which focused on the country's transmission backbone and utility reform
Katie and Casey discuss the Ghana Power Compact, and MCC's decision to pull funding when Ghana ended its utility concession
Learn more about MCC's work in Liberia, and Casey’s suggestions for the new one now in development
Casey mentions MCC's newest energy compact. Learn more about the Côte d'Ivoire Regional Compact
Catch up on all High Energy Planet episodes, including this season’s E1 with Adva Saldinger
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