Bush Urges African Leaders to Press Reforms
President Bush, meeting in Washington with the leaders of five African nations, said today that democratic reforms and free trade were the best ways to help poor nations.
Mr. Bush's remarks follow an announcement on Saturday that the world's wealthiest nations would cancel at least $40 billion of debt owed to international agencies by the world's poorest countries, most of them in Africa.
The Group of 8 - the United States, Britain, Germany, France, Italy, Canada, Japan and Russia - agreed that the best solution to poor countries' indebtedness was to cancel their debt burden completely rather than easing it by taking over interest repayments. But in his remarks today, made as he stood alongside the presidents of Botswana, Ghana, Mozambique, Namibia and Niger, Mr. Bush also seemed to be saying that economic stability and growth had to go hand in hand with political reforms.
"All the presidents gathered here represent countries that have held democratic elections in the last year," Mr. Bush said. "What a strong statement that these leaders have made about democracy and the importance of democracy on the continent of Africa.
"All of us share a fundamental commitment to advancing democracy and opportunity on the continent of Africa, and all of us believe that one of the most effective ways to advance democracy and deliver hope to the people of Africa is through mutually beneficial trade," he said.
Mr. Bush devoted most of his remarks during his appearance at the Executive Office Building, next to the White House, to hailing the successes of the African Growth and Opportunity Act that was approved by Congress in 2000.
The act reduced or eliminated tariffs and quotas on more than 1,800 items from some African countries, and Mr. Bush said today that exports from those nations to the United States were up 88 percent over the year before. The agreement requires participating countries to show that they are making progress toward a market-based economy, the protection of workers' rights and policies that will reduce poverty.
"We have opened our markets, and people are now making goods that the United States consumers want to buy," Mr. Bush said. "And that's helpful. That's how you spread wealth. That's how you encourage hope and opportunity."
He said that over the same period, United States exports to sub-Saharan Africa were up by 25 percent.
"In other words, this is a two-way street," he said. "Not only have folks in Africa benefited by selling products in the United States, American businesses, small and large, have benefited through the opening of the African market as well."
Mr. Bush said that the agreement announced on Saturday would benefit nations "that have put themselves on the path to reform."
"We believe that by removing a crippling debt burden, we'll help millions of Africans improve their lives and grow their economies," he said.
Mr. Bush also emphasized that the United States was committed to helping fight the spread of HIV and AIDS, and said that the United States was well on its way to reaching a five-year goal of providing treatment to nearly two million Africans.
"These are just some of the initiatives that we're pursuing to help Africa's leaders bring democracy and prosperity and hope to their people," Mr. Bush said.
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