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Ärende: Press Release (0705319) for Thu, 2007 May 31
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President Bush Discusses United States International Development Agenda
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For Immediate Release Office of the Press Secretary May 31, 2007

President Bush Discusses United States International Development Agenda
Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center Washington, D.C.

˙ /news/releases/2007/05/20070531-9.wm.v.html ˙˙Presidential Remarks
˙˙Audio

˙˙˙˙˙ Fact Sheet: Commitment to International Development

10:07 A.M. EDT

MRS. BUSH: Thank you, George, for that kind introduction. Thanks to the
United States Global Leadership Council for hosting us this morning. Next
week, leaders from around the world will gather in Germany to advance goals
shared by people of every nation: economic empowerment, education, and good
health.

The eagerness of children to learn, the desire of individuals to provide
for themselves and their families, and the longing of mothers to see their
babies grow up healthy are universal. Yet poverty, a lack of education, and
disease have kept millions from around the world from fulfilling these
fundamental desires. Today the governments and citizens of many countries
are working to overcome these crises. And the American people are proud to
stand with them.

Through our government, the American people have given billions of dollars
to lift the burdens of crushing debt, illiteracy, malaria and HIV/AIDS. At
the end of June, I'll travel to the African nations of Senegal, Mozambique,
Zambia and Mali to see the results -- some of these results firsthand. I'll
visit homes protected by mosquito sprays, and go to clinics supported by
the President's Malaria Initiative. There, volunteers distribute mosquito
nets so that mothers can sleep knowing that their babies are safe.

I'll visit a pediatric hospital supported by the President's Emergency Plan
for AIDS Relief, where doctors and nurses care for thousands of
HIV-positive babies. I'll see new wells installed by the Play Pumps
Alliance, which will provide as many as 10 million Africans with clean
water. And I'll visit schools supported by our government's African
Education Initiative. By supplying textbooks and training hundreds of
thousands of teachers, the African Education Initiative gives African
children hope for security, prosperity and good health.

These are just some of the things our government is doing around the world
that Americans should be proud of. Through our development initiatives,
we're helping to build free economies, teach children how to read, and save
the lives of millions of men and women -- women like Kunene Tantoh. I first
met Kunene two years ago when I visited a Mothers to Mothers center in
South Africa. At Mothers centers, which receive PEPFAR seed money,
HIV-infected women receive information and support to keep their unborn
babies HIV free. When Kunene first arrived at the Mothers clinic, she had
just discovered she was pregnant -- and HIV positive. A normal CD4 count,
which measures a person's immune cells, is between 500 and 1,500. Kunene's
count was 2. It seemed unlikely that she would survive.

But with the treatment Kunene received at the Mothers clinic, she did
survive, and delivered a beautiful boy named Baron. He's HIV free. Kunene
became a mentor to other mothers, and now she serves as a site coordinator
at the largest Mothers facility. Today she and Baron stand as a symbol of
hope to everyone living positively with HIV. Kunene and Baron. (Applause.)
Kunene also represents the many lives that have been touched and saved by
the compassion of the American people.

Now I'm proud to introduce a man of extraordinary compassion. Ladies and
gentlemen, my husband, President George W. Bush. (Applause.)

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you all. Please be seated. Laura, thanks for that
short introduction. (Laughter.) I'm proud to be introduced by my wife. I
love her dearly. She's a great First Lady. (Applause.)

And I appreciate the chance to address the U.S. Global Leadership Campaign.
This is a fine organization and it's an important organization. It's
rallying businesses and non-governmental organizations and faith-based and
community and civic organizations across our country to advance a noble
cause, ensuring that the United States leads the world in spreading hope
and opportunity. It's a big deal, and I appreciate your participation.

It's a big deal because your efforts are needed. Millions suffer from
hunger and poverty and disease in this world of ours. Many nations lack the
capacity to meet the overwhelming needs of their people. Alleviating this
suffering requires bold action from America. It requires America's
leadership and requires the action of developed nations, as well.

That's the message I'm going to take with me to Europe next week, when
Laura and I go to the G8. At that meeting I will discuss our common
responsibility to help struggling nations grow strong and improve the lives
of their citizens. And today I'm going to describe some of the initiatives
that I will be discussing with world leaders next week to help developing
nations build a better future for their people.

Before I do so, I want to thank George Ingram, the President of the U.S.
Global Leadership Campaign. I thank the members of my Cabinet who share the
same passion I do for helping those less fortunate around the world -- that
would include Carlos Gutierrez, Department of Commerce; Secretary Mike
Leavitt, Department of Health and Human Services; Secretary Sam Bodman at
the Department of Energy; Administrator Steve Johnson of the EPA. Thank you
all for coming. Proud to be serving with you.

I am glad that the Acting Director of the U.S. Foreign Assistance and
Acting Administrator of USAID is here, Henrietta Fore. Thanks for coming. I
appreciate John Danilovich, who is the head of the Millennium Challenge
Corporation; Rob Mosbacher, the head of OPIC. I appreciate other members of
my administration who joined us today.

I thank the members of the Diplomatic Corps who are here today. I thank the
members of the U.S. Global Leadership Campaign.

We are a compassionate nation. When Americans see suffering and know that
our country can help stop it, they expect our government to respond. I
believe in the timeless truth, and so do a lot of other Americans, to whom
much is given, much is required. We're blessed to live in this country.
We're blessed to live in the world's most prosperous nation. And I believe
we have a special responsibility to help those who are not as blessed. It
is the call to share our prosperity with others, and to reach out to
brothers and sisters in need.

We help the least fortunate across the world because our conscience demands
it. We also recognize that helping struggling nations succeed is in our
interest. When America helps lift societies out of poverty we create new
markets for goods and services, and new jobs for American workers.
Prosperity abroad can be translated to jobs here at home. It's in our
interest that we help improve the economies of nations around the world.

When America helps reduce chaos and suffering, we make this country safer,
because prosperous nations are less likely to feed resentment and breed
violence and export terror. Helping poor nations find the path to success
benefits this economy and our security, and it makes us a better country.
It helps lift our soul and renews our spirit.

So America is pursuing a clear strategy to bring progress and prosperity to
struggling nations all across the world. We're working to increase access
to trade and relieve the burden of debt. We're increasing our assistance to
the world's poorest countries and using this aid to encourage reform, and
strengthen education, and fight the scourge of disease. We'll work with
developing nations to find ways to address their energy needs and the
challenge of global climate change.

Bringing progress and prosperity to struggling nations requires opening new
opportunities for trade. Trade is the best way to help poor countries
develop their economies and improve the lives of their people. When I took
office, America had free trade agreements with three countries. Today we
have free trade agreements in force with 14 countries, most of which are in
the developing world. Three weeks ago, my administration and Congress
agreed on a new trade policy that will be applied to free trade agreements
with Peru, Colombia, Panama and South Korea. And I look forward to working
with Congress to get all these trade bills passed. These bills are good for
our economy.

But it's important for members of Congress and the people of this country
to understand free trade is the best way to lift people out of poverty. And
so the United States also seeks to open markets to the Doha round of trade
negotiations. Doha represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to help
millions in the developing world rise from poverty and despair. If you're
interested in helping the poor people, you ought to be for trade and
opening up markets for their goods and services. And the Doha round gives
us an opportunity to do just that.

We put forward bold proposals to help conclude a successful Doha round. And
at the G8 summit next week, I'm going to urge other nations to do the same.
A successful Doha round will benefit all our countries and it's going to
transform the world.

I know that trade can transform lives, I've seen it firsthand. Laura and I
were recently in Guatemala. We went to a small village and saw what can
happen when markets are open for local entrepreneurs. In this case, we met
some farmers who for years had struggled to survive, worked hard just to
put food on the table for their families by growing corn and beans. That's
all they were able to do. It's a hard way to make a living, growing corn
and beans. When we negotiated the trade agreement called the CAFTA DR,
which opened up new markets for Guatemalan farmers, the entrepreneurial
spirit came forth. There are entrepreneurs all over the world, if just
given a chance, they can succeed.

Today, the farmers in that village are growing high-value crops, because
they have new markets in which to sell their product. The business we met
-- the entrepreneur we met now employs a thousand people. Trade will
improve lives a lot faster than government aid can. It's in our interest
that we open up markets, for our products, and for the products of others.
People just want to be given a chance. And the United States will take the
lead in making sure those markets are open for people to be able to realize
a better life.

Building progress and prosperity to struggling nations requires lifting the
burden of debt from the poorest countries. That makes sense. It doesn't
take a Ph.D. in economics to figure out, if you're paying a lot of money on
interest, you're not having enough money to support your own people. In the
past, many poor nations borrowed money, and they couldn't repay the debt.
And their interest payments were huge. And, therefore, they didn't have the
opportunity to invest in education and health care. So the administration,
my administration worked with G8 nations to ease the debt burden. We're not
the first administration to figure this out. My predecessor did the same
thing, because it's the right policy for the United States of America.

Two years ago at Gleneagles, the G8 nations agreed to support a
multilateral debt relief agreement that freed poor countries of up to $60
billion in debt. This year, we built on that progress, when the
Inter-American Development Bank approved another debt relief initiative for
some of the poorest nations in our neighborhood, in our own hemisphere.
This initiative will cancel $3.4 billion owed by five countries: Bolivia,
Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, and Nicaragua. And that represents more than 12
percent of their combined GDP, an average of nearly $110 for every man,
woman, and child in these countries. And this money is now free to help
these nations invest in improving their lives of citizens. It makes sense
to forgive debt. If you're interested in helping the poor, it makes sense
for the developed world to forgive the debt. And that's what the United
States will continue to do.

Bringing progress and prosperity to struggling nations requires increased
American assistance to countries most in need. Since I took office, we have
more than doubled U.S. development spending across the world -- from about
$10 billion in 2000, to $23 billion in 2006. It's the largest increase in
development assistance since the Marshall Plan.

The first four years of my administration, we doubled our assistance to
Africa. At the G8 summit in 2005, I promised our assistance to Africa would
double once again by 2010. I made a promise to the people. People expect us
to deliver on that promise, and I expect the Congress to help. We must not
shortchange these efforts. Congress needs to approve my full funding
request for development assistance this year. We need to get the job done.
(Applause.)

We're focusing increased American assistance for developing nations on
three key goals -- in other words, we have some goals, we're not just going
to spend money. We have a reason to spend the money and we expect there to
be results when we spend that money -- so do the taxpayers of this country.
It's one thing to be compassionate, it's another thing to be accountable
for the money.

First, we're going to use our aid to help developing countries build
democratic and accountable institutions and strengthen their civil
societies. To succeed in the global economy, nations need fair and
transparent legal systems; need free markets that unleash the creativity of
their citizens; need banking systems that serve people at all income
levels; and a business climate that welcomes foreign investment and
supports local entrepreneurs.

The United States is helping developing nations build these and other free
institutions through what we call the Millennium Challenge Account. Under
this program, America makes a compact with developing nations. We give aid,
and in return they agree to implement democratic reforms, to fight
corruption, to invest in their people -- particularly in health and
education -- and to promote economic freedom. Seems like a fair deal,
doesn't it -- taxpayers' money from the United States in return for the
habits and procedures necessary for a solid society to develop. We don't
want to give aid to a country where the leaders steal the money. We expect
there to be accountability for U.S. money and that's the principle behind
the Millennium Challenge Account. Eleven nations have compacts in place
worth nearly $3 billion. And now 14 additional nations are eligible to
negotiate compacts with the Millennium Challenge Corporation, headed by
Ambassador Danilovich.

Let me give you an example of how this program can make a difference. In
Madagascar the leaders of this island nation set a goal in their compact to
improve agricultural production. In other words, we work with a nation,
they have set the goal; we support their goal. They want their farmers to
be able to compete in the global marketplace. We agreed to help by
investing in agricultural business centers that work with local farmers. In
one village, this initiative helped a group of farmers who were surviving
by collecting firewood and producing charcoal. That's how these folks were
trying to get ahead. They'd find firewood and make charcoal out of it, and
hope they could find a market. It's a tough way to make a living in a
modern world.

The business center that the compact established helped the farmers work
together to identify a new product, a natural oil used in skin care
products. I probably could use some of that myself. (Laughter.) The center
helped these farmers develop -- helped them to develop a business plan.
They acquired financing to set up a distilling plant. They built
relationships with buyers in their nation's capital.

Before America and Madagascar signed our compact, a typical farmer in this
village could earn about $5 a week selling charcoal. After two months of
bringing the new product to the market, the livelihood of these farmers
increased. One farmer was able to raise his income enough to save about
$500, money he plans to use for a child's education.

We're going to help encourage African entrepreneurs in other ways, as well.
Today, I'm announcing a new project called Africa Financial Sector
Initiative. Through this initiative, we'll provide technical assistance to
help African nations strengthen their financial markets. The U.S. Overseas
Private Investment Corps, OPIC, headed by Rob Mosbacher, will work with the
financial community to create several new private equity funds that will
mobilize up to a billion dollars of additional private investment in
Africa.

If you're interested in job creation, there's got to be capital available.
It's in our interest that we help provide capital to African entrepreneurs.
We want them to find access to capital, and we want them to have access to
markets because we want to improve their lives. And when people's lives in
countries on the continent of Africa improve, it helps the United States of
America. It's what our taxpayers have got to understand. It's in our
interest. (Applause.)

All of this will go for naught if people don't have a good education. So
the second way we're using our aid is to improve education so that the
young in the developing world have the tools they need to realize their
God-given potential. Many parents across the world either have no access to
education for their children, or simply cannot afford it. It's a fact of
life, something the world needs to deal with, particularly those of us who
have got some money.

In many nations, girls have even less educational opportunity. It robs them
of a chance to satisfy their ambitions or to make use of their talents and
skills, and it's really sad, when you think about it. It really is. The
question is, does the United States care? Should we do something about it?
And the answer is, absolutely. If boys and girls in Africa and other
developing nations don't learn how to read, write, and add and subtract,
this world is just going to move on without them. And all the aid efforts
we'll be trying will go to naught, in my judgment.

And so in 2002, I launched the African Education Initiative to help address
the great need. Through this initiative, we have provided about $300
million to expand educational opportunities throughout the continent, and
we're going to provide another $300 million by 2010. We will have doubled
our commitment. (Applause.)

One young woman who has benefited from this program is a woman named Evelyn
Nkadori, from the Masai people of the grasslands of Kenya. In her rural
community, girls are rarely offered an education -- just never given a
chance. They're expected to care for younger children until they're married
themselves at an early age. That was the custom. She had a different vision
for her future, and our initiative helped her realize it. Our program
helped her complete high school, and now she's attending Chicago State
University on a scholarship. She's one of the first -- she is one of the
first women from her village ever to receive a college education. She hopes
to attend medical school, and then go home and help others.

Evelyn, I appreciate you being here today. I'm honored by your presence.
Thank you for your courage. We can't make you want to succeed, but we can
help you succeed. Thanks for coming. (Applause.)

And we need to do more, for not only children on the continent of Africa,
but poor children throughout the world. And so I'm calling on Congress to
fund $525 million over the next five years to make our educational
initiatives even more robust. And the goal is to provide basic education
for 4 million additional children on the continent of Africa and across the
globe.

We've got another interesting idea, and that is to establish new
Communities of Opportunity centers in poor nations to provide skills and
language training for 100,000 at-risk youth; giving these young people in
these countries the skills they need to succeed, we're going to give them
keys to a brighter future.

The third way we're using our aid is to fight the scourge of disease in
Africa and other parts of the developing world. Epidemics like HIV/AIDS and
malaria destroy lives and they decimate families. They also impose a
crippling economic burden on societies where so many are struggling to lift
their families out of poverty. We've taken action to fight these diseases.
We've done so because it's in our nation's interest to do so.

In 2003, my administration launched a new initiative to combat HIV/AIDS --
the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR. We pledged $15
billion over five years for AIDS prevention and treatment and care programs
in many of the poorest nations on Earth. This level of support was
unprecedented. I'm proud to report, on behalf of our citizens, that it
remains the largest commitment by any nation ever to combat a single
disease. (Applause.)

And the program is working. Three years ago, about 50,000 people on the
continent of Africa were receiving antiretroviral drugs for help. Today,
over 1.1 million people are receiving lifesaving drugs. And this is a good
start. It's a necessary start, and it's a promising start; but we need to
do more. So yesterday in the Rose Garden, Kunene and Baron and the good Doc
-- and I don't know where the Bishop is -- (laughter) -- anyway, they were
standing with me up there when I called on Congress to greatly expand our
efforts in the fight against HIV/AIDS, by doubling our initial commitment,
by dedicating an additional $30 billion to this struggle over the next five
years in the year 2009. (Applause.)

And here's the goal: support treatment for nearly 2.5 million people, to
prevent more than 12 million new infections, and to provide compassionate
care for 12 million people, including 5 million more orphans and vulnerable
children. We set the goal for the past initiative, and we met it. And we're
going to set the goal for this one, and we're going to meet it. But
Congress needs to get that money as quickly as possible so it makes it
easier to meet the goal. I proposed this unprecedented investment for a
reason -- it's in the world's interest and our nation's interest to save
lives. And that's exactly what this program is doing.

We saved a life of a fellow named Robert Ongole. He's with us today. John
Robert Ongole -- not yet, not yet, John Robert. (Laughter.) I'm going to
make it a little more dramatic than that. (Laughter.) You probably didn't
know who I was talking about when is skipped the "John." (Laughter.)

John Robert has a family of two children; he has HIV/AIDS. This disease
ravaged his body. His weight dropped to 99 pounds. He developed
tuberculosis and other health problems. He and his family felt certain that
he would die. Then John Robert began receiving antiretroviral treatment
through PEPFAR in Uganda. The treatment restored his strength. He returned
to the classroom and he continued being a dad.

John Robert is earning his bachelor's degree in education. He's
volunteering to help other people. The American people need to hear what he
had to say: "When you talk of PEPFAR, that's my life, because it worked.
Because without it, I couldn't have lived. Now I want to save the lives of
other people." Thanks for coming, John Robert. (Applause.)

Does it matter to America if John Robert lives? You bet it does. That's why
this initiative is an important initiative. That's why it's important
Congress continue to spend taxpayers' money to save lives like John
Robert's, and Kunene's, and Baron's.

As we increase our commitment to fight HIV/AIDS, we're also continuing an
unprecedented commitment to fight against malaria. Malaria takes the lives
of about 1 million people a year in the developing world, and the vast
majority are under five years old. In some countries, this disease takes
even more lives than HIV/AIDS. Every 30 seconds, a mother in Africa loses
her child to malaria. It's a tragic disease because it's preventable and
treatable. We can do something about it.

In 2005, I announced the President's Malaria Initiative. Through this
initiative, we're spending $1.2 billion over five years to fight the
disease in 15 targeted African countries. This initiative provides
insecticide-treated bed nets, indoor spraying, and life-saving anti-malaria
medications. This strategy works. It really isn't all that complicated. It
takes money and organization and effort.

In Angola, this initiative helped increase the number of children protected
by nets from less than 5 percent to nearly 70 percent. You buy the nets,
you educate the people, you get the nets to them, and when they start using
them, lives are saved. This initiative has expanded malaria protection for
more than 6 million Africans in its first year, and by the end of the
second year, in 2007, we expect to reach a total of 30 million people.
(Applause.)

At the G8 summit, I'm going to urge our partners to join us in this
unprecedented effort to fight these dreaded diseases. America is proud to
take the lead. We expect others to join us, as well. If you want to help
improve lives on the continent of Africa, and around the world, join with
the United States and provide substantial help to fight HIV/AIDS and
malaria.

Bringing progress and prosperity to struggling nations requires growing
amounts of energy. It's hard to grow your economy if you don't have energy.
Yet, producing that energy can create environmental challenges for the
world. We need to harness the power of technology to help nations meet
their growing energy needs while protecting the environment and addressing
the challenge of global climate change.

In recent years, science has deepened our understanding of climate change
and opened new possibilities for confronting it. The United States takes
this issue seriously. The new initiative I am outlining today will
contribute to the important dialogue that will take place in Germany next
week. The United States will work with other nations to establish a new
framework on greenhouse gas emissions for when the Kyoto Protocol expires
in 2012.

So my proposal is this: By the end of next year, America and other nations
will set a long-term global goal for reducing greenhouse gases. To help
develop this goal, the United States will convene a series of meetings of
nations that produce most greenhouse gas emissions, including nations with
rapidly growing economies like India and China.

In addition to this long-term global goal, each country would establish
midterm national targets, and programs that reflect their own mix of energy
sources and future energy needs. Over the course of the next 18 months, our
nations would bring together industry leaders from different sectors of our
economies, such as power generation and alternative fuels and
transportation. These leaders will form working groups that will cooperate
on ways to share clean energy technology and best practices.

It's important to ensure that we get results, and so we will create a
strong and transparent system for measuring each country's performance.
This new framework would help our nations fulfill our responsibilities
under the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change. The United States
will work with all nations that are part of this convention to adapt to the
impacts of climate change, gain access to clean and more energy-efficient
technologies, and promote sustainable forestry and agriculture.

The way to meet this challenge of energy and global climate change is
through technology, and the United States is in the lead. The world is on
the verge of great breakthroughs that will help us become better stewards
of the environment. Over the past six years, my administration has spent,
along with the Congress, more than $12 billion in research on clean energy
technology. We're the world's leader when it comes to figuring out new ways
to power our economy and be good stewards of the environment.

We're investing in new technologies to produce electricity in cleaner ways,
including solar and wind energy, clean coal technologies. If we can get a
breakthrough in clean coal technologies, it's going to help the developing
world immeasurably, and at the same time, help protect our environment.

We're spending a lot of money on clean, safe nuclear power. If you're truly
interested in cleaning up the environment, or interested in renewable
sources of energy, the best way to do so is through safe nuclear power.
We're investing in new technologies that transform the way we fuel our cars
and trucks. We're expanding the use of hybrid and clean diesel vehicles and
biodiesel fuel.

We're spending a lot of your money in figuring out ways to produce ethanol
from products other than corn. One of these days, we'll be making fuel to
power our automobiles from wood chips, to switchgrasses, to agricultural
wastes. I think it makes sense to have our farmers growing energy, so that
we don't have to import it from parts of the world where they may not like
us too much. And it's good for our environment, as well.

We're pressing on with battery research for plug-in hybrid vehicles that
can be powered by electricity from a wall socket, instead of gasoline.
We're continuing to research and to advance hydrogen-powered vehicles that
emit pure water instead of exhaust fumes; we're taking steps to make sure
these technologies reach the market, setting new mandatory fuel standards
that require 35 billion gallons of renewable and alternative fuels by the
year 2017. It's a mandatory fuel standard. We want to reduce our gasoline
consumption by 20 percent over the next 10 years, which will not only help
our national security, it will make us better stewards of the environment.
The United States is taking the lead, and that's the message I'm going to
take to the G8.

Last week, the Department of Energy announced that in 2006, our carbon
emissions decreased by 1.3 percent while our economy grew by 3.3 percent.
This experience shows that a strong and growing economy can deliver both a
better life for its people and a cleaner environment at the same time.

At the G8 summit, I'm going to encourage world leaders to increase their
own investments in research and development. I'm looking forward to working
with them. I'm looking forward to discussing ways to encourage more
investment in developing nations by making low-cost financing options for
clean energy a priority of the international development banks.

We're also going to work to conclude talks with other nations on
eliminating tariffs and other barriers to clean energy technologies and
services by the end of year. If you are truly committed to helping the
environment, nations need to get rid of their tariffs, need to get rid of
those barriers that prevent new technologies from coming into their
countries. We'll help the world's poorest nations reduce emissions by
giving them government-developed technologies at low cost, or in some case,
no cost at all.

We have an historic opportunity in the world to extend prosperity to
regions that have only known poverty and despair. The United States is in
the lead, and we're going to stay in the lead.

The initiatives I've discussed today are making a difference in the lives
of millions; our fellow citizens have got to understand that. We're talking
about improving lives in a real, tangible way that ought to make our
country proud. That's why we've asked these folks to come. It's one thing
for the President to be talking about stories; it's another thing for the
people to see firsthand what our help has done.

I'm so proud of the United States of America. This initiative shows the
good character and the decency of the American people. We are a decent
people. We feel responsible for helping those who are less fortunate. And I
am proud to be the President of such a good nation. Thanks for coming, and
God bless. (Applause.)

END 10:46 A.M. EDT
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