---
type: strategy
title: MCP Governance Strategy
description: Governance covers token isolation, authorization, rate limiting, operational metrics, and lifecycle control.
resource: sources/mcp-strategies.md
tags: [mcp, governance, authorization, observability]
timestamp: 2026-06-30
---

# MCP Governance Strategy

MCP governance makes agent tool usage auditable, controlled, and scalable.

## Governance controls

- Use token isolation and do not pass caller bearer tokens downstream.
- Choose machine-to-machine or user-delegated authorization per tool.
- Apply per-user, per-tool, and server-level rate limits.
- Monitor token usage, tool-selection accuracy, tool latency, and success rates.
- Maintain approved MCP server registries and versioning.

## Operational metrics

- Tool invocation count
- Tool latency
- Tool success/failure rate
- Number of tools registered with each agent
- Output token length by tool
- Rate-limit events

## Related concepts

- [MCP Security Risks](../risks/mcp-security-risks.md)
- [MCP Hosting Strategy](mcp-hosting-strategy.md)
