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Bush Africa Trip - Monday News Round-Up

Reuters: Bush offers more aid to fight malaria in Africa

On the third day of his five-nation Africa tour, Bush travelled to this northern Tanzanian city in the shadow of Mount Kilimanjaro to focus attention on the mosquito-borne disease, which kills at least 1 million infants and children under age 5 in sub-Saharan Africa each year.

“For years malaria has been a health crisis in sub-Saharan Africa. The disease keeps sick workers home, school yards quiet, communities in mourning,” he said during a visit to Meru District Hospital. “The suffering caused by malaria is needless and every death caused by malaria is unacceptable.”

Calling the effort to help fight malaria in Africa a “campaign of compassion”, Bush announced a new plan, in partnership with the World Bank, to distribute 5.2 million insecticide-treated bed nets in Tanzania.

He said the campaign, which will begin within six months, will provide enough nets to protect every child in Tanzania between the ages of 1 and 5.

(Read full story)

The Independent UK: Popular in Africa: Bush has given more aid than any other US president

The US President’s visit to Benin, Liberia, Ghana, Rwanda and Tanzania may, on the surface, be about promoting America’s funding for Aids treatment, shoring up support for a US military base on the continent, and quietly scoping out new oil opportunities. But there is another, perhaps more important, reason for President Bush’s week-long visit to Africa: people actually like him here.

A recent report from the Pew Global Attitudes Project found that “the US image is much stronger in Africa than in other regions of the world”. At least 80 per cent of respondents in Ghana, Kenya and Cote d’Ivoire were favourable to the US. In all other sub-Saharan African countries polled, there were more “favourables” than “non-favourables”. Part of the reason for that support is money. Lots of it.

(Read full story.)

Michael Gerson on the MCA

As President Bush visits Africa this week, much attention will focus on the fight against HIV/AIDS, and rightly so. More than 1.4 million men, women and children now receive anti-retroviral drugs because of the generosity of the American people. The President’s AIDS initiative has been a soaring success - a case study in the power of American compassion to save lives.  
 
But while the fight against HIV/AIDS deserves this attention, there is other good news on the African continent that goes beyond the progress made against this terrible epidemic.
 
On his visit to Tanzania, President Bush signed the largest agreement ever - $700 million - as part of the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA). Like the President’s AIDS initiative, the MCA is a bold, innovative venture of American leadership.
 
The MCA has fundamentally changed the way the United States delivers financial support. The account gives African leaders and governments incentives and practical help to fight corruption, free their economies from repressive and unfair policies and increase investment in education and health. Countries that take these courageous steps are awarded a MCA compact. To date, more than two-thirds of the MCA’s $5.5 billion is being invested in African countries that are enacting broad-based, fundamental reforms. Other African nations, which naturally want their own financial support, are getting the message and starting down the difficult but crucial road toward government transparency and accountability.
 
More than simply sending dollars, the MCA lays the groundwork for sustainable growth in Africa - the type of growth that can raise millions above extreme poverty. Economic development, in the long run, results from trade and foreign investment. The most effective kind of aid helps build the infrastructure, human capital and legal structures that encourage trade and invite investment – roads, health care, education and strengthening the rule of law.
 
Today, the MCA has been such a success in Africa that there are many more countries competing for its funds than there are funds available. Congress should fully fund this vital program. And I hope ONE Members, and all voters who care about seeing the African people succeed, will push their leaders to invest in the promise of the African people by investing in the MCA.
 
-Michael Gerson

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2/19/08 UPDATE: This was cross posted onto Townhall today.

Senator Durbin on Bush’s Africa Trip

Last summer the New York Times and the Pew Global Attitudes Project released a poll that showed that Africans were “wary but hopeful” about their future and the future of the continent. With devastating poverty, a massive AIDS epidemic and political strife, their hope seems remarkable. And it is this hope and their hard work, coupled with increased efforts by the U.S., which are making Africa a better place. Still, much more must be done.

Sub-Saharan Africa is home to 11 percent of the world’s population and only three percent of the world’s health care workers. It suffers nearly half of the world’s deaths from infectious diseases and bears nearly two-thirds of the world’s HIV burden.

Thankfully, due to global leadership, over $7 billion has been distributed to 136 counties through the Global Fund in just 5 years. This program expands our ability to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria – a devastating but treatable and preventable disease. To date, every dollar committed by the US has been matched and doubled by contributions from other donors. The Global Fund needs to be expanded so we can continue to invest in the future of the continent by ensuring Africans have access to basic health care. This is a priority of mine and of ONE.

While I don’t agree with the President about much, we both feel that improving access to health care is one of the most important things our country can provide to the people of Africa. He has made good on his commitment by proposing to spend $30 billion over 5 years to combat global AIDS through the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). I’m proud of this program and will work in the Senate to make sure that it is not only funded but expanded.

We are making strides, and we should be proud of our work to date, but we must continue to challenge ourselves to do more.

-U.S. Senator Dick Durbin, D-Ill.

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UPDATE: Cross Posted on the Huffington Post.

Bush in Africa - Sunday News Round-Up

Some News Clips from the Day:

Bush, in Africa, Urges Congress to Double AIDS Relief (Bloomberg):

Feb. 17 (Bloomberg) — President George W. Bush urged the U.S. Congress to double spending for his AIDS program, while he signed an almost $700 million infrastructure grant to Tanzania and said his administration would continue to reward African leaders that it trusts.

“I want to ask Congress to listen to the leaders of Africa, analyze what works, stop the squabbling and get the program reauthorized,” Bush said today at Tanzania’s statehouse in Dar es Salaam, in a press conference with President Jakaya Kikwete.

(Read full story)

Bush, in Africa, Emphasizes Successes (New York Times):

DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania — As violence in Africa threatened to overshadow his six-day tour of the continent, President Bush on Saturday defended his decision not to visit strife-torn nations like Kenya and Sudan, saying he wanted to focus instead on successes like his programs to fight AIDS and malaria.

“This is a large place with a lot of nations, and no question, everything is not perfect,” Mr. Bush said during a brief visit to Benin before arriving Saturday evening here in the capital of Tanzania. “On the other hand, there’s a lot of great success stories, and the United States is pleased to be involved with those success stories.”

(Read full story)


Bush confronts Africa policy critics (AFP):

DAR ES SALAAM (AFP) — US President George W. Bush with backing from Tanzania’s leader Sunday defended US policies towards Africa, from efforts to end Kenya’s bloody political crisis to the war on HIV/AIDS…
”It’s a program that’s been proven effective,” he said, telling US lawmakers: “Listen to leaders on the continent of Africa, analyze what works, stop the squabbling, and get the program reauthorized.”

(Read full story)

Some Background Info For Us

Hi there,

President Bush took off for Benin last night, and will also visit Rwanda, Ghana, Tanzania, and Liberia in the next 6 days.

We expect the trip to cover several of the bipartisan programs ONE supporters have been supporting for years, such as PEPFAR, PMI, the MCA and AGOA.

The ONE policy staff, who we love, put together briefs on all of these topics so that you can peruse at your leisure during the next few days. As news pours in as to what our president is doing day-to-day on his Africa trip, I’ll likely be referring back to the stats in these quick, easy-to-read briefs.

• PEPFAR (President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief)
• PMI (President’s Malaria Initiative)
• MCA (Millennium Challenge Account)
• AGOA (The African Growth and Opportunity Act)

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-Virginia Simmons

Rich’s (World) Vision

George W. Bush’s trip to Africa is likely to be crowded out of the headlines by the presidential campaign. Too bad. President Bush’s bold program to fight AIDS has been, arguably, the most successful initiative of his administration in solving problems and improving America’s image overseas. The candidates who wish to succeed him – as well as Congress which decides how taxpayer money is invested - would do well to take note.

Under Bush, the United States has taken a leadership role in the global fight against AIDS, greatly increasing funding for AIDS prevention and care. But PEPFAR hasn’t just thrown money at the problem; it has empowered communities and private organizations to find local solutions.

In Zambia, World Vision works with a consortium of aid organizations to mobilize and support 120 community - and faith-based organizations. To date, PEPFAR has committed $57 million to the program. But this public funding is being leveraged to attract an equal amount of private aid. Churches and businesses throughout the U.S. have provided Caregiver Kits, containing basic supplies needed by 15,000 Zambian volunteers who are looking after adults and children affected by AIDS. World Bicycle Relief is supplying bicycles for 23,000 caregivers, orphans, and other vulnerable children. Churches, communities, private organizations, businesses, and governments are working together to help those in need, especially children.

While they distance themselves from President Bush on other issues, the presidential candidates should consider this private-public partnership model for tackling problems that affect our world today. And despite the distractions of an extraordinary election year, Congress must move swiftly to reauthorize PEPFAR at the increased level requested by Mr. Bush, making sure at least 10 percent of that aid reaches children.

-Rich Stearns, President of World Vision

David Lane Weighs in on Bush’s Trip

Later today, President Bush heads to Africa to visit five countries — Benin, Tanzania, Rwanda, Ghana, and Liberia. Here at ONE, we are going to watch this trip closely and try to provide you with unique insight and analysis. We’ll have voices from Africa, from Capitol Hill, and from people on the ground providing aid to the African people. We will provide policy briefings for each day of the trip. And ONE will be part of the trip, with our team on the ground in Rwanda and Ghana providing their first-hand views of what’s happening.

This is an exciting moment. In large part because of the advocacy work done by ONE members and other organizations involved in the fight to save lives, President Bush and the Congress have made major strides.

The number of Africans surviving HIV/AIDS thanks to life-saving medical treatment has increased ten-fold.

There are 4.7 million bed nets protecting African children from malaria-carrying mosquitoes.

There are more jobs and greater opportunities, especially for women and families to break away from the cycle of brutal, extreme poverty.

And there are new governments who are working hard to increase democracy and opportunity for their people in countries like Liberia, where President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has made transparency and accountability a driving force in her government reform plan. ONE members played a big part in winning the cancellation of Liberia’s debt by the IMF just a few months ago.

These are major improvements of which we can all be proud. But none of us should be satisfied.

President Bush’s trip to Africa is an opportunity to take a hard look at what still remains to accomplish. Yes, we have achieved a great deal, but 70 percent of sub-Saharan Africans continue to live on less than $2 a day. Experts report that, last year alone, 35 percent of all people living globally with HIV lived in Southern Africa, where 32 percent of all global new HIV infections and AIDS deaths occurred. Tens of millions of people still go hungry each day. In this region alone,13,150 children under age 5 died from preventable childhood diseases and malnutrition.

While in 2000 the U.S. joined 188 other countries to sign onto the Millennium Development Goals, we are falling behind in reaching their 2015 targets.

A few days ago, we asked you to lend your voice to a new challenge for the candidates, calling on them to visit Africa and see first-hand the opportunities and the challenges that people in those countries face. Already, more than 52,000 people have signed that petition, and we are not finished yet. In the next few days, we will take these petitions and deliver them to the presidential candidates, and see if they are willing to step up and make fighting extreme poverty and preventable disease a real priority. If you haven’t signed the petition, add your voice today.

Check back each day as we chronicle President Bush’s trip to Africa. And let us know your thoughts. Join the discussion here on the ONE Blog.

-David Lane, CEO and President of ONE

America’s commitment to AIDS fight must continue

President Bush has less than a year left for in his presidency. He might be thinking: so much to do in so little time! Nevertheless, the president is spending some of this precious time, seven days to be specific, visiting African nations including my homeland, Rwanda. I am sure there are many reasons why the president is visiting the motherland; but likely one of the reasons is to shine the spotlight even brighter on the president’s commitment to fight AIDS. His Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) has laid the foundation for our next president, but there is still much work to do. In his last State of the Union, President Bush called on Congress to continue fighting AIDS by funding PEPFAR. I hope all the presidential candidates, Democrats and Republicans alike, will continue to fulfill these commitments.

Before casting my first American vote during the Iowa caucuses, I had an opportunity to share with most of the presidential candidates, including the ones who are still in the race, about the reality of growing up in poverty and what it is like to lose a friend to AIDS. In fact, all the candidates who are still in the race told me in person that the fight against poverty and HIV/AIDS would be part of their agenda. They have spoken about this on the campaign trail across the country, speaking to all Americans, one by one, young and old, about a bright future. In November, I will be casting my first vote in a national election. If nothing else, I want to know how our next president will continue the American legacy of coming to the aide of the most vulnerable. How will he or she honor his or her word to fight against poverty and AIDS?

-Natalie Sugira

Hole in ONE

ONE sponsored and decorated the 18th hole of the Downtown Des Moines Skywalk Golf Tournament. There were almost 2,000 people participating in the world’s largest indoor golf tournament held in a 3-mile section of the skywalk system! When golfers got to the 18th hole, they were shooting for a “Hole in ONE” through giant ONE bands set up on the hole.

We spoke to golfers about the campaign, handed out stickers and literature, bands, and of course, “Hole in ONE” prizes! Two volunteers even got their picture printed in a local weekly newspaper. The caucuses may be over but ONE is still talking to Iowans about extreme global poverty and disease. We had a fun day and got lots of great visibility to the campaign at the same time!

-Libby Crimmings