WASHINGTON D.C. -  The Philippines is on track to win Compact status with the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), the country’s top envoy assured during the vin d’honneur last Friday.

“We’re still on track, we gave additional documents and talks are continuing,” Ambassador Willy Gaa told ABS-CBN News.

The MCC board of directors had met just two days earlier and they vowed to intensify the fight against poverty but in a way that would make every dollar count.

“The Board received updates on engagement with those countries seeking MCC funding including Moldova, Senegal, Jordan, Malawi and the Philippines,” an MCC statement read.

“The fight against global poverty is more important than ever, especially given the current economic climate, and the United States stands steadfast in its goal to reduce poverty through sustainable economic growth,” State Secretary Hillary Clinton said.

Clinton chairs the MCC.

“We will work to produce tangible results from every taxpayer’s dollar we spend overseas, and we will partner with developing countries that take responsibility for their development needs and accept the highest standard of accountability for those dollars,” she stressed.

Minister Carlos Sorreta denied the Philippine’s Compact status is being delayed by the government’s failure to meet the MCC’s corruption standard.

“What most people don’t understand is that it really takes time to get Compact status,” he explained to ABS-CBN News, echoing Gaa’s positive outlook.

The Philippines has received $21 million under a Threshold status agreement designed to prepare the country to enter into the more hefty Compact status.

That money was spent to expand training in the Office of Ombudsman to include lifestyle checks and asset forfeiture, among others, and drafting a bill for Congress to align the Bureau of Customs with World Customs Organization standards.

The MCC considers the Threshold programs completed last March.

They are now working with the Department of Finance to identify and help develop projects for MCC funding. “In line with a clear national development priority, agricultural productivity, infrastructure, human development and governance were identified as constraints to economic growth in the Philippines,” the MCC report said.

The Finance dep’t submitted five “concept papers” that offer badly needed projects for MCC funding.

The Philippines is only in the initial stages of the intricate steps for getting Compact status. It received the notice of eligibility in March 2008 and submitted the concept papers last February.

It now has to work for a “concept assessment memorandum”, a congressional notification on compact negotiations, issuance of an investment memo, approval by the MCC board, Compact signing, “entry into force” and finally, the initial disbursement.

“We’re just on our second year,” Sorreta said, suggesting the wait could be indeed long.

Gaa revealed the MCC has not yet turned down any of the five “concept papers” they have submitted. He said these projects are worth $460 million.

The State Department is seeking, in its Fiscal 2010 foreign aid budget, $1.4 billion for possible new MCC Compact nations, including the Philippines.

Having won Compact status, a country can just as quickly lose it. The MCC, for instance, decided last week to scrap part of the Compact projects with Nicaragua, resulting in a loss of about $62 million.

“The MCC regrets that the government of Nicaragua has not take steps to respond to concerns expressed by its people and the international community surrounding the recent municipal elections,” declared acting MCC CEO Rodney Bent.

The MCC also put on hold funding for Armenia for actions “inconsistent with MCC principles promoting democratic governance”.

The MCC has given over $6.3 billion to 18 Compact status nations.

Gaa said they are optimistic the Philippine’s Compact process will move forward another notch when the MCC board next meets in July.