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For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
June 20, 2002

Fact Sheet: The U.S. Commitment to Africa's Growth and Prosperity

Presidential Action

Today at the Leon Sullivan Summit in Washington, D.C., President Bush will outline new policies to help Africa achieve economic growth, lasting peace, and widespread prosperity:

Improving Africa's Education

With increased levels of education, rich and poor countries become more productive, leading to higher rates of growth that in turn allow for improved standards of living. The current state of education in Africa, however, is preventing the continent from fulfilling this path toward greater prosperity. Consider:

The U.S. wants to help provide Africa's children with the advantages of literacy and basic education. Toward this end, the Administration will double the funding of the Africa Education Initiative to $200 million, providing:

Combatting HIV/AIDS

The current HIV/AIDS scourge combined with a woefully inadequate health care system continue to handicap African, Caribbean, and other countries in pursuit of economic growth and poverty reducing policies. Consider:

Yesterday at the White House President Bush announced a new $500 million International Mother and Child HIV Prevention Initiative that seeks to prevent the transmission of HIV/AIDS from mothers to infants and to improve health care delivery in Africa and the Caribbean. Under this initiative:

This initiative is scaleable so that it could be expanded within these countries or additional countries globally at a future time.

In FY 2002, the United States is providing $988 million for global HIV/AIDS assistance -- a 36% increase over FY 2001. In his FY 2003 Budget, President Bush proposed $1.1 billion in global HIV/AIDS assistance, including $640 million for USAID and $477 for HHS -- a 13 percent increase. The Bush Administration has dedicated $500 million to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, making the United States by far the leading contributor to the Fund.

With this initiative, the United States is raising by $500 million its commitment to stop mother-to-child transmission of HIV/AIDS, which was funded at less than $20 million in FY '01. This new International Mother and Child HIV Prevention Initiative reflects an additional commitment beyond the existing U.S. commitment to the Global Fund.

Reducing Trade Barriers to Economic Growth

Reducing trade barriers in Africa will yield new opportunities for African businesses and entrepreneurs, create new jobs, and spur much needed investment in the region. At the moment, however, most of Africa continues to adopt protectionist policies. Sub-Saharan Africa, for example, maintains average tariff rates of 19% -- nearly 50% higher than the average tariff level of developing countries:

The U.S. is committed to ensuring that Africa becomes a vibrant partner on the global economic stage. The African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) has achieved great success with more than 92% of U.S. imports from beneficiary countries now entering the U.S. duty free. In total, non-fuel imports from AGOA beneficiaries grew by more than 8% in 2001 while total U.S. global imports declined by nearly 7%. In addition, the U.S. has made the following commitments to further reducing trade barriers and spurring growth in Africa:

Achieving Peace and Security

Peace and Security are necessary conditions for future growth and prosperity in Africa.

The President is pursuing a strategy to end these wars and combat terror in Africa. We will help African nations and organizations develop their ability to respond to crises and will work closely with responsible African leaders and our allies in Europe to support regional peace initiatives. The Administration's strategy consists of:


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