“We believe Africa is a continent full of promise and talent and opportunity, and the United States will do our part to help the people
of Africa realize the brighter future they deserve."
President George W. Bush, June 13, 2005
Presidential Action
President Bush today with his G-8 partners launched an historic commitment to assist Africa in bolstering its economic development
through the strengthening of African leaders and African people. The
United States will help ensure that reforms in Africa continue to gain
momentum. The President also welcomed G-8 support for new initiatives
that tangibly address real needs with real solutions.
Africa is a continent of promise, and the United States will work to see
that the children of Africa have the opportunity to grow up healthy and
realize their dreams. As freedom is on the march around the world, it is
vital that democracy and prosperity continue to find a permanent home on
the continent of Africa - a healthy, prosperous Africa will make this
world a better and safer place.
The United States welcomes G-8 support for initiatives that advance U.S. priorities:
Agreeing to debt relief
Scaling up the fight against malaria
Addressing urgent humanitarian needs
Improving education, particularly for girls
Increasing development assistance
Greater Trade and Investment
Greater support for Peace and Stability
Debt Relief - A Clean Slate for Financially Over-Burdened Countries
With leadership from President Bush and Prime Minister Blair, the G-8 countries agreed to cancel 100% of the bilateral and multilateral debt
for qualifying Heavily Indebted Poor Countries. It is also important
that the agreement preserves the financial integrity of the
international financial institutions.
In June of 2001, President Bush called on the World Bank and other
development banks to "stop the debt" by providing up to 50 percent of
their assistance to the poorest countries in the form of grants. At the
time, more than 99% of all multilateral development bank assistance was
provided as loans. The World Bank has made steady progress on this
ambitious goal. The latest International Development Association (IDA,
the concessional arm of the World Bank) and African Development Fund
replenishments stipulate that approximately 45% of assistance to the
poorest countries will be provided on grant terms, with approximately 40
countries receiving 100% grants.
Fighting Malaria - Cutting Mortality by 50%
Responding to the President's challenge on June 30 to dramatically
reduce malaria as a major killer of children in sub-Saharan Africa, the
G-8 agreed to work with African countries to increase funding for
fighting malaria to reach 85% of the vulnerable populations with the key
interventions. This will save children's lives and reduce the drag on
African economies.
The President pledged to increase U.S. funding of malaria prevention and treatment by more than $1.2 billion over five years. The goal is to reduce malaria deaths by 50 percent in targeted African countries.
The additional funding provided by the United States will eventually
benefit more than 175 million people in 15 or more African countries.
This commitment to expand malaria prevention and treatment programs in
Africa is in addition to the $200 million the U.S. already spends on
malaria prevention, treatment, and research worldwide.
The President calls on other donors, foundations, and private, public, and voluntary organizations to complement the United States commitments by providing additional funding.
Addressing Humanitarian Needs - Saving Millions of Lives
Responding to the call of President Bush and Prime Minister Blair, the G-8 agreed to help sufficiently fund the urgent needs of millions of
Africans affected by humanitarian emergencies on the continent. They
further agreed to work with other partners to improve the timeliness,
predictability and effectiveness of humanitarian aid and to ensure the
root causes of these crises continue to receive adequate attention.
On June 7, 2005, President Bush announced approximately $674 million of additional resources to respond to humanitarian emergencies in Africa. The President took decisive action to avert famine in the Horn of
Africa, where approximately $414 million of the additional resources are
being provided.
The United States has already provided nearly $1.4 billion this fiscal
year for humanitarian needs in Africa, some through the United Nations
and some directly to non-governmental organizations providing relief in
emergency settings. The $674 million announced June 7 will bring total
funding for FY05 to more than $2 billion.
The G-8, through its "Ending the Cycle of Famine" initiative, is engaged with the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) and others to address the root causes of famine, including through more sustainable land and water management, market-oriented agricultural policies, improved infrastructure, access to finance, more developed regional markets, and science and technology.
Education - Hope for the Future
The G-8 agreed to invest more in greater educational access, increased teacher training, and the establishment of new schools. It will also support the Education for All agenda in Africa.
The President announced on June 30 $400 million to continue and to
increase the funding of the African Education Initiative (AEI) from 2007
to 2010 to train teachers and administrators, award scholarships, build
schools, buy textbooks, and expand opportunities inside and outside the
classroom.
The goal of the AEI is to provide:
Training for 500,000 teachers and administrators;
300,000 scholarships under the Ambassador's Girls Scholarship Program with an emphasis on educational opportunities for girls;
Development and distribution of 10-million textbooks and related learning and teaching materials;
Improved access for marginalized students and teachers to learning, education materials, and training;
Improved access to education and training for out-of-school youth, orphans, and other vulnerable children; and
Improved access to productivity-increasing job skills training and development.
Increasing Development Assistance - Reinforcing Africa's Commitment to
Reform
President Bush announced that the United States will again double
assistance to Africa between 2004 and 2010. Consistent with the
President's policy, the G-8 agreed that development requires not just
aid, but better governance, stability and peace in order for the private
sector to grow and create jobs.
The U.S. provided around $4.3 billion in bilateral and multilateral
official development assistance to sub-Saharan Africa in 2004. This
assistance helps relieve poverty, provide essential health and medical
services and spur economic growth.
In 2004, the Congress established the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) proposed by President Bush to provide aid to poorer nations based on the common sense idea that aid works best in countries that are proving their commitment to govern justly, respect the rule of law, invest in their citizens, and open up their economies.
Of the seventeen MCA eligible countries, eight are Sub-Saharan African countries. The first Millennium Challenge Compact was with Madagascar, for nearly $110 million, and a second Millennium Challenge Compact with Cape Verde, for approximately $110 million, was signed July 4, 2005. Seven of thirteen countries eligible to apply for the MCA threshold assistance program are in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Greater Trade and Investment - The Engine of Economic Growth
The G-8 reaffirmed the belief that private enterprise is a prime engine of growth and development. Consistent with the President's policy, the G-8 agreed that an ambitious and balanced conclusion to the Doha Round is the best way to make trade work for Africa and increase African
countries' integration into the global economy.
In 2001, President Bush extended the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). Because of AGOA, which offers preferential trade benefits to eligible sub-Saharan African countries (currently 37), two-way trade between the United States and sub-Saharan Africa topped $44 billion in 2004.
From 2000-2004, U.S. imports from Sub-Saharan Africa increased by more than 50% and U.S. exports to Sub-Saharan Africa increased 44%, thanks in part to the more business-friendly environment AGOA has promoted.
AGOA has helped African countries to diversify exports. Non-oil AGOA imports - including apparel, automobiles, and processed agricultural
goods - have more than doubled since 2001 (the first full year of AGOA),
reaching $3.5 billion in 2004.
Over 98% of imports from AGOA countries entered the United States duty-free in 2004.
The U.S. accounts for more than 24 percent of exports from Sub-Saharan Africa; the largest single-country share of all of Africa's major
trading partners. The U.S. share of the exports from Sub-Saharan Africa
rose by 21 percent between 1998 and 2003.
As the world's largest single-country contributor of trade capacity
building assistance, the U.S. committed more than $400 million in
2002-2004 to technical assistance programs aimed at helping sub-Saharan
African countries to further develop their capacity to trade.
Peace and Stability - The Foundation for Development
The G-8 affirmed that peace is the first condition of successful
development and recommitted to support Africa's efforts to build a
peaceful and stable Africa. The President urged the continued support to
African initiatives to prevent, mediate and resolve conflict,
particularly backing the continued capacity development of the African
Union.
The G-8 agreed to support within their own governments' mechanisms for more effective and flexible crisis response and to promote more comprehensive and coordinated support to the United Nations, African Union and other key regional organizations.
Over half of the African peacekeeping units deployed worldwide have received U.S. training and equipment.
Through the President's Global Peace Operations Initiative (GPOI), the goals of which were endorsed at Sea Island in 2004, the U.S. will spend approximately $100 million in FY2005, most of which will go towards
Africa, and an expected total of $660 million over 5 years to increase
global capacity for peace support operations in Africa and elsewhere.
The African Contingency Operations Training and Assistance program will permit training of more than 40,000 peacekeepers over 5 years. The U.S. will also support conflict prevention and management efforts of regional and sub-regional organizations, such as the AU and Economic Community of West African States.
The U.S. played a key role in negotiating the peaceful resolution of the 20-year conflict between the Government of Sudan and the Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement that led to the signing on January 9, 2005 of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) and the formation of the Government of National Unity to be sworn in on July 9, 2005. This process provides a framework for resolving other conflicts in Sudan, including Darfur.
The Administration has led the international community's successful
efforts to remove Charles Taylor from power peacefully and to help
Liberia recover from decades of civil war and a near-total absence of
government services and of respect for the rule of law. In FY2004-2005,
the Administration has allocated over $700 million for international
peacekeeping efforts, security sector reform, good governance,
elections, as well as humanitarian relief, resettlement, education, and
community revitalization programs for those affected by the fighting.
Peace has returned to Liberia, and elections are scheduled.
The U.S. facilitated the drafting and signing of the Tripartite
Agreement between DRC, Rwanda and Uganda that has resulted in the
reduction of violence in Eastern Congo and major steps towards the
normalizations of relations and the government of Rwanda agreement to
accept the return of the FDLR rebels into Rwandan society. The U.S.
formed the Great Lakes Contact Group with European allies to coordinate
international efforts to support the peace process and political
transition in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The U.S. supported international efforts that helped end the civil war
in Sierra Leone in 2002 and has been the largest contributor to the
Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL), which is helping to secure
long-term peace and stability by prosecuting war criminals. The U.S. has
taken a lead in addressing the threat to stability posed by unregulated
alluvial diamond mining, illicit trading, and exploitation of young
miners.