GAMBIA-L Archives

The Gambia and Related Issues Mailing List

GAMBIA-L@LISTSERV.ICORS.ORG

Options: Use Forum View

Use Monospaced Font
Show Text Part by Default
Show All Mail Headers

Message: [<< First] [< Prev] [Next >] [Last >>]
Topic: [<< First] [< Prev] [Next >] [Last >>]
Author: [<< First] [< Prev] [Next >] [Last >>]

Print Reply
Subject:
From:
Essau Gambia <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
The Gambia and related-issues mailing list <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Sun, 24 Jun 2007 01:08:43 -0400
Content-Type:
text/plain
Parts/Attachments:
text/plain (109 lines)
Washington -- First lady Laura Bush embarks on her third Africa tour June
25, during which she will visit U.S.-funded HIV/AIDS and malaria prevention
and treatment projects. She also will highlight education and women's
empowerment during her five-day trip to Senegal, Mozambique, Zambia and
Mali.

"People can live positively with AIDS for a long time, live a healthy life,"
she said at Howard University June 19, adding, "AIDS is not the death
sentence that we once thought it was."

It is a message she will bring to Africa as she visits programs funded by
the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), initiated by
President Bush in 2003. He recently asked Congress to double the $15
billion, five year commitment to contain the devastating epidemic. (See related
article<http://usinfo.state.gov/xarchives/display.html?p=washfile-english&y=2007&m=May&x=20070530161954lcnirellep0.4527094>
.)

"It's already an unprecedented program. There has never been a fight against
a single disease of that magnitude before," Deputy Global AIDS Coordinator
Jimmy Kolker told journalists at a White House briefing June 19. He said
half the resources in the global fight against AIDS come from the United
States.

PEPFAR funding allows grassroots organizations to raise awareness about
HIV/AIDS and implement programs for prevention, treatment and care of
infected individuals.

Likewise, the 2005 President's Malaria Initiative (PMI) builds the capacity
of nongovernmental organizations by funding prevention strategies such as
pesticide spraying, mosquito bed net distribution and the purchase of the
most effective anti-malarial drugs. The five-year, $1.2 billion program aims
to reduce malaria deaths in target countries in Africa by 50 percent.
(See related
article<http://usinfo.state.gov/xarchives/display.html?p=washfile-english&y=2007&m=April&x=20070426154916AKllennoCcM0.6662104>
.)

"People may not realize, we had malaria in the United States until 1946, and
we were able to totally eradicate it," Laura Bush told *CNN* June 20. She
said the ultimate goal of PMI is "to eradicate malaria in the countries that
are the hardest-hit in Africa."

Every year a million malaria-infected people die, most of them African
infants, children and pregnant women, according to the World Health
Organization. Malaria is an intermittent fever transmitted by mosquito
bites. (See related
article<http://usinfo.state.gov/xarchives/display.html?p=washfile-english&y=2007&m=May&x=200705071516191EJrehsiF0.1787836>
.)

"I think this trip in particular is going to emphasize … the integration of
the fight against AIDS with other development health goals," Kolker said.

The four African countries have unique national histories, plans and needs,
and by "adapting to the local circumstances, following the national lead and
with national partners, we're able to help people where they live and to
relate to the reality on the ground for them," Kolker said.

Empowerment of women and education of girls also figures in Laura Bush's
schedule. In Dakar, Senegal, the first stop on her tour, she will award five
Ambassador's Girls' Scholarships provided by the Africa Education
Initiative. The initiative will fund 555,000 scholarships to African girls
by 2010. "It's critically important that they be educated, not only to be
able to provide for financial stability for their home, but also for their
own health," the first lady's chief of staff, Anita McBride, said at the
briefing.

Besides visits to PEPFAR- and PMI-funded programs in the four countries,
Bush will participate in a women's empowerment round table in Mozambique and
visit Flame, a transit home for orphans, and WORTH, an organization that
educates and provides microfinancing for women in Zambia.

Bush also will launch the first public/private-funded PlayPump water system
at Regiment Basic School in Lusaka, Zambia. Colorful merry-go-rounds for
children, PlayPumps also give communities easy access to clean water.

In Mali, Bush will attend an event highlighting cooperation with the
Millennium Challenge Corporation to encourage economic growth through key
infrastructure development. The gateway Bamako-Senou International Airport
and agricultural irrigation in the Niger River Delta are the leading
projects.

The emphasis is on the personal touch and grassroots participation. "While
we're very proud of the huge financial contribution that the administration,
the Congress, the American taxpayers have committed to AIDS, what we're most
proud of is that we actually know the individuals who are being helped,"
Kolker said.

Laura Bush visited Rwanda, Tanzania, Sou th Africa, Liberia, Ghana and
Nigeria on two previous African trips.

For more information on U.S. policy, see
*Health<http://usinfo.state.gov/gi/global_issues/health.html>
* and *HIV/AIDS <http://usinfo.state.gov/gi/global_issues/hiv_aids.html>*.

(USINFO is produced by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S.
Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

Posted on Saturday, June 23, 2007 (Archive on Tuesday, July 24, 2007)
Posted by PNMBAI  Contributed by PNMBAI
Return <http://www.freedomnewspaper.com/Homepage/tabid/36/Default.aspx>

¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤
To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface
at: http://listserv.icors.org/archives/gambia-l.html

To Search in the Gambia-L archives, go to: http://listserv.icors.org/SCRIPTS/WA-ICORS.EXE?S1=gambia-l
To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to:
[log in to unmask]
¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤

ATOM RSS1 RSS2