MCC selected Uganda to participate in the Threshold Program in FY 2006. When Uganda was selected as eligible for a threshold program, it did not meet the compact eligibility criteria in the Ruling Justly category. The government proposed its threshold program focus on preventing corruption and strengthening enforcement of the law because of corruption’s role in impairing service delivery, diverting scare resources, and undermining the legitimacy of government.
The Uganda threshold program targeted policy areas measured by one of MCC’s indicators for compact eligibility, Control of Corruption. Uganda’s threshold program had three components, or projets, that focused on preventing corruption in public procurement, increasing the effectiveness of investigations and prosecutions, and strengthening the role of civil society in the fight against corruption.
Uganda Threshold Program Implementation
The Uganda threshold program agreement was signed in March 2007. The program concluded in December 2009. As the program administrator, USAID managed program operations and oversaw the program implementers: Associates in Rural Development, Inc., U.S. Department of Justice’s International Criminal Investigative Training Assistance Program, and U.S. Department of Justice’s Overseas Prosecutorial Development Assistance and Training division.
Program Achievements
Uganda’s threshold program focused on anti-corruption efforts in the public procurement sector. The threshold program supported the publication and distribution of 17 procurement audits of government entities through the advocacy of civil society and with support from the media. An Anti-Corruption Division of the High Court was established under the prosecution strengthening component. It tried and convicted three high-profile corruption cases early in its existence. The program also leveraged civil society activism and supported the production and publication of a National Book of Fame and Shame. This document received national attention because of its candid presentations of public perceptions of those who were most corrupt and who contributed to anti-corruption efforts.