Worldwide—Development Credit Authority (DCA)

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)’s Development Credit Authority provided flexible credit enhancement tools to encourage sustainable private sector investment in creditworthy growth sectors currently underserved by formal financial institutions. The DCA allowed USAID missions to partially guarantee loans or debt instruments issued by private-sector lenders to sub-sovereign borrowers (private companies and municipalities). Successful DCA deals ensured sustainable credit relationships between local, underserved businesses and commercial financial institutions. The DCA—catalyzing finance and facilitating new financial institution relationships—promoted a sustainable private-sector approach to economic development and growth.

Sample Activities

• Work with USAID’s Office of Development Credit (ODC) to design and analyze new DCA deals.
• Communicate clearly the DCA’s strengths and functions so that it becomes a regular component of mission programming.

Select Results

• Addressed the ODC’s next generation of activities, expanded upon the office’s successes, and facilitated the increased use of the DCA abroad.
• Provided technical staff with good understanding of DCA and relevant expertise.
• Assisted ODC in thinking about larger organizational and performance issues.