By Julian Pecquet/The Africa Report
The revived Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) is eyeing investments in Liberia and Mozambique as its board meets on 10 December.
The Trump administration is expected to announce new investments in the African mining sector this week as the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) holds its first board meeting since restarting its grant-making process.
The independent agency, chaired by Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau, meets on Wednesday 10 December with an agenda that includes a leadership update, approval of the Financial Year 2026 Country Eligibility and Selection Process, a portfolio review and the consideration of board resolutions.
Left in limbo following a review by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) earlier this year, the MCC roared back to life in September with a $300m regional electrification grant for Côte d’Ivoire.
While the agency has been holding its cards close to the vest, hints about its possible intentions came to light during an October panel on Africa’s strategic minerals at the conservative Hudson Institute.
“I was approached by MCC about two months ago because they’ve been given a directive to get into the mining space,” Tony Carroll, a Washington lawyer and international affairs consultant, told the gathering.
“And they’ve decided to target the countries [where] they are going to try to elaborate this strategy in a meaningful way, infrastructure, support for the mining industry. And those are Liberia and Mozambique.”
Africa watchers will be paying particular attention for any evidence that the Trump administration supports the so-called ‘Liberty Corridor’ connecting Ivanhoe Atlantic’s iron ore mines in Guinea to the coast of Liberia.
The company, chaired by Trump’s former special envoy to the Great Lakes and the Sahel, Peter Pham, has been lobbying the government of Liberia President Joseph Boakai for rail access to shipping ports.
Liberia’s largest foreign investor, ArcelorMittal, however, does not want to lose its privileged access to critical transport infrastructure that it paid to overhaul.
Meanwhile, the White House has announced that Under Secretary of State for Economic Affairs Jacob Helberg will lead the US delegation to Côte d’Ivoire President Alassane Ouattara’s inauguration.
“Under Secretary Helberg and the delegation’s attendance are a clear signal of the United States’ commitment to deepening our partnership with Côte d’Ivoire to advance economic prosperity driven by key technology sectors and to promote security for our people,” the State Department said.
