Bush to Propose Another $100 Million Over Five Years for Education in Africa

Associated Press ^ | Jun 20, 2002 | Jennifer Loven

[niki]

Bush to Propose Another $100 Million Over Five Years for Education in Africa

By Jennifer Loven Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) - Ahead of a summit of industrialized nations intended to focus on the plight of sub-Saharan Africa, President Bush says America should spend $20 million more a year on education there and will visit the continent next year.

Though the proposed spending boost would double the government's investment on an education initiative in Africa, the $200 million total was deemed modest by critics.

The World Bank has estimated that wealthy donor countries will need to commit between $3 billion and $4 billion annually in additional foreign aid over the next 10 years to achieve the goal of universal primary education in the developing world by the year 2015. Estimates of the number of children in poor nations who have never attended school range as high as 125 million, about two-thirds of them girls.

Gene Sperling, former President Clinton's chief White House economic adviser and now head of the Center for Universal Education at the Council on Foreign Relations, said 75 million of the children out of school worldwide are in Africa.

"The Bush announcement proposes spending $20 million more each year for education in all of Africa, which is the cost of building just one large high school in the United States," Sperling said. "This proposal is very disappointing."

A bipartisan group of congressmen urged Bush, in a letter sent Thursday, to raise U.S. spending on basic education around the world to $1 billion by 2006.

The president planned to announce his travel plans and the new spending initiative Thursday night at a dinner in memory of the Rev. Leon Sullivan, a Philadelphia minister credited with helping end apartheid in South Africa, White House officials said.

On Wednesday, the president promised an extra $500 million over three years to help prevent mothers in parts of African and the Caribbean from transmitting the AIDS virus to their children.

Africa will be a major focus of the Group of Eight meeting that Bush attends next week in Canada.

The White House hopes the new African initiative will ease criticism about U.S. spending on developing nations and projecting a compassionate image of Bush to both foreign leaders and American voters. The $10 billion U.S. foreign aid budget is the lowest among rich nations as a percentage of economic output.

Rock star Bono and Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill toured Africa last month after the singer persuaded the U.S. official to see for himself the importance of debt relief, fair trade and effective aid. O'Neill says the United States is committed to helping Africa, but that aid money should produce measurable results.

The proposed new spending will train more than 420,000 new teachers in Africa, provide more than 250,000 scholarships for girls, and, with help from historically black colleges in America, provide 4 1/2 million more textbooks for children in Africa, White House press secretary Ari Fleischer said.

The president's trip to Africa next year will focus on the benefits of a law that reduces trade barriers to African nations that have market-based economies and policies on reducing poverty, fighting corruption, protecting workers' rights and fostering human rights, Fleischer said.

[Twodees]

Mmmm, I'm just so happy to have a conservative president I don't know what in the world to do.

[Shermy]

The Bush announcement proposes spending $20 million more each year for education in all of Africa...

On Wednesday, the president promised an extra $500 million over three years to help prevent mothers in parts of African and the Caribbean from transmitting the AIDS virus to their children...

Guess the drug companies have more to gain.

Just a subsidy folks, and the most ineffective way to do anything about the disease.

[MadRobotArtist]

Oh yes, It's the responsibility of Americans to educate the Africans. It's the new White Man's Burden. That and reparations which will soon be forced down our throats. Since when is it our responsibility to educate the African people? I thought that they blamed us for slavery? I thought that they were so much better off without the influence of the west? Well, gee, now we're going to fund them another 100 million dollars. That's 600 million total. Kiss that money good-bye. It's not going to do anything but go into the hands of warlords, and drug companies. It's a waste of time to try and educate a people who have become dependent by design, and ignorant by choice.

If they really wanted to live in a civilized society, or have a real modernized culture, their leaders would put the people to work, and educate their populations so that skills could be taught, and the raw materials and natural resources could be harvested. It would be nice if a country that wasn't so dependent on Americans and other countries would simply quit bleeding us dry, and get off their butts, educate their own people, and start developing their nations instead of just demanding more and more from the outside world. I for one am more than happy to let these people become modern on their own. They will do it, if they are left alone, and don't get our help. That's the way you get people to start working and creating, cut them off, and they'll either move on, or start producing.

[RodgerD]

Our money straight down a rat-hole.

[Militiaman7]

Yep! By George, Another give away.

If I said what I was thinking I'd be banned from FR.

[cynicom]

Wheeeeeee!!!!!!! Throw it all away George, its only money that we had to borrow. I am getting tired of his giveaways.

[hsmomx3]

Where the heck is all of this money going to come from? Don't answer, I know. And when we're all broke over here, than what? While he's throwing money at everything under the sun, why doesn't he just give every American one million dollars. He will be the President who raised taxes higher than anyone else in order to provide for his programs. Does he seriously think those Africans will be educated? This is getting way out of control. And the right get more furious everyday.

[Sungirl]

Where the hell is all this money coming from? Are WE that RICH? Every day..it's 100 million here...200 million there......Enough already.

[Twodees]

Yep, and Boosh ain't even warmed up yet. Wait until he starts saying that he wants a good, commonsense slavery reparations plan from Congress.

[Jhoffa_]

I wouldn't have such a problem with this if:

1) No money to Mugabe and his loons. That's financing racism and terrorism by ANYONES definition.

2) The money has to reach the people it's intended to reach. No nero types fiddling with tax dollars while rome burns. It's gotta be AID to the people who need aid.

Aside from that, do it.

No problem.

[Arleigh]

Why doesn't Jorge Bush just get it over with? Next year he should rap the State of the Union address with a 40 and a blunt in his hand.

[Orion]

On the $500m AIDS to Africans thread, the Bushbots were all deep in onanism over "taking another issue from the liberals. My response was that the Left will outbid them. Sure enough, The UNIBANGER got ugly about how we didn't spend $2.4B (never mind he didn't when he had the chance). Now, our 'ol Chuckle-head proposes another $100m for education.

Never mind. Nothing to see here. Keep moving. Vote GOP in '02 and '04. Don't even bother to hold these sell-outs accountable.

Oh, did I forget...
There was the whole non-white home ownership inititive, the federal funds for attracting librarians, CFR, Farm bill, steel taxes, apologizing for our EP-3 crew, amnesty for Central American illegals, and on, and on, and on, and on...

[Sabertooth]

Gene Sperling, former President Clinton's chief White House economic adviser and now head of the Center for Universal Education at the Council on Foreign Relations, said 75 million of the children out of school worldwide are in Africa.

"The Bush announcement proposes spending $20 million more each year for education in all of Africa, which is the cost of building just one large high school in the United States," Sperling said. "This proposal is very disappointing."

...The White House hopes the new African initiative will ease criticism about U.S. spending on developing nations and projecting a compassionate image of Bush to both foreign leaders and American voters. The $10 billion U.S. foreign aid budget is the lowest among rich nations as a percentage of economic output.

Memo to the "Bush can do no wrong" crowd

So much for Dubya taking the Democrats' issues away, he just bolstered their hand.

Pandering is wrong and condescending. This money doesn't belong to the President, it's not his to give away. And the GOP will never match the Democrats in shamelessness. When Bush plays on the Left's turf, we all lose. He's setting up future losing battles that don't need to be fought by conceding on principle now.

The President's African pandering is stupid on so many levels, I can't even guess how his apologists will spin out of it.

But here they come...

[Sabertooth]

You're gonna love this.

[meenie]

Ah just loves cumpashinut cunservitism. When the hell do I get my education paid for?

[parsifal]

See Mbuki get HIV
See Mbuki have sex with a virgin
See Mbuki still have HIV
See Mbuki run to the hospital
Run Mbuki! Run!

[Arleigh]

Wait until he starts saying that he wants a good, commonsense slavery reparations plan from Congress.

I'm afraid this is no joke. Look for something like a "Marshall Plan for Minority America" that funnels many $ billions into education, job training, healthcare, home ownership, small business development and fatherhood initiatives for blacks and hispanics. After the recession double-dips or right before the 2004 elections - whichever comes first.

[niki]

More fun and games

[Arleigh]

When the hell do I get my education paid for?

If you're not rich and not nonwhite, you're outa luck.