For Immediate Release
Office of the First Lady
June 28, 2007

Statement by Mrs. Bush at the PlayPump Launch
Regiment Basic School
Lusaka, Zambia

10:46 A.M. (Local)

MRS. BUSH: I want to thank you for coming out today to cover this PlayPump. This is one of the commitments that the United States government made in cooperation with several foundations, as well -- the Case Foundation and the United States -- the PlayPump Foundation, as well and this -- last year when I spoke at the Clinton Global Initiative this was the initiative that I came with and this was the -- to put PlayPumps in as many countries as we can, especially in schoolyards like this one so that children can come to school, don't have to spend the day -- especially girls -- looking for water themselves or carrying water to their house.

And as you can tell, it runs on the energy of children at play. So it's also a very fun piece of play equipment for children in the schoolyard.

Thank you all for coming out to cover it. Today, also, already this morning we've seen some skits that children at this school are doing to remind other children to keep themselves safe to avoid being exposed to AIDS or HIV. We went -- and I just met with a group of girls who are receiving scholarships, some of them are orphan girls, orphans because their parents died of AIDS, and they're receiving scholarships from -- paid for by PEPFAR, the President's Emergency Plan for Aids Relief. But coming through our ambassador, the Ambassador Girls' Scholarship Program.

And I'm so happy to be here. I want to thank President and Mrs. Mwanawasa for welcoming me here today, and your First Lady for joining me today as we go around to see these terrific programs that are going on in Zambia with the support of the government and the people of Zambia.

So thank you all so much.

END 10:48 A.M. (Local)