PEACE & SECURITY | Creating a more stable world
04 February 2008
Bush Trip Will Showcase Strong Pro-Africa Legacy
Five-nation trip to emphasize economic development
Washington -- President Bush’s February 15-21 trip to five African nations is going to be "very historic and significant" because it will "solidify one of the strongest components" of his legacy: Africa, says the first and former assistant U.S. trade representative for Africa, Rosa Whitaker.
In a January 29 interview with America.gov, Whitaker, who is now president and chief executive officer of her own U.S.-Africa trade consulting firm -- the Whitaker Group -- said when you look at President Bush’s trip to Benin, Tanzania, Rwanda, Ghana and Liberia, the benefits cannot be measured. "One, he is bringing the global media with him that will shine a spotlight on the promise of Africa and its remaining challenges. The second thing I like about this trip is he is going to consult" with African leaders, she said.
Under the Bush administration, Whitaker recalled, there have been a number of excellent Africa initiatives, such as the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), an enhanced African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), and initiatives on education and malaria prevention.
"These are extraordinary initiatives toward Africa. I think it is great that the president is going to consult with the Africans on how to build on the progress …. Because the president is coming in the spirit of partnership and consultation -- that is one of the reasons why these initiatives have been effective."
The Bush trip -- which is his second presidential trip to Africa, Whitaker recalled -- is solid evidence that "America is abandoning the traditional tokenism and ‘parachute diplomacy’ of U.S. policy toward Africa. That," she said, "is now being replaced with a coherent and sustained approach that rewards African nations that are committed to stable democracies and open markets.
"If you look at the countries he has chosen -- they are all stable democracies and open markets. These are precisely the countries that need to be supported," along with others, she said.
Whitaker praised President Bush for being "very attentive" toward Africa, "but in a way that provides dignity to the Africans." The former assistant U.S. trade representative said she is especially pleased that Bush will use the trip to focus on economic development, "particularly as we are in the process of advancing new AGOA legislation in the Congress."
All of the countries being visited on the trip, she said, are AGOA beneficiaries.
The U.S. Congress, Whitaker recalled, is now in the process of considering further AGOA enhancements, such as the possibility of making the trade act permanent rather than having it expire in 2015, expanding its coverage by an additional 1,600 products, and providing tax incentives for American companies that make investments in labor-intensive sectors in Africa.
Whitaker was asked to comment on Bush’s Africa legacy and the fact that his trip coincides with the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Department of State’s Africa Bureau.
"If you look at President Bush’s legacy and where that legacy is strongest," she said, "it is in Africa. I think we have to thank [Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs] Ambassador [Jendayi] Frazer and the Africa Bureau for a lot of that work."
Whitaker recalled that the Africa Bureau has "evolved" over the years from "just paying attention to conflicts and putting out fires in Africa to one that is promoting tangible initiatives on the ground to build economies and sustainable growth. I am very proud of the Africa Bureau," she stressed.
Whitaker said she always has believed that "the who is far more important than the what, so it is going to be very important that subsequent administrations have very strong assistant secretaries of state for Africa …. Certainly, Ambassador Frazer is a hard act to follow."
Looking to the future, Whitaker said she hopes to see the next U.S. president be even more focused on helping Africa because, despite the president’s dedication to the continent, "a lot of work remains."
She expressed confidence that that will happen because there is now a strong constituency for Africa in the United States "like we have never really seen before."
What is most important, she said, is that the constituency exists at the grassroots level and is not just made up of celebrities. "Americans do care about this region of the world," she stressed.
Whitaker called on Africans to take advantage of the "unique opportunity" that the Bush trip presents to them.
"Incumbents leaving office [like President Bush] have the opportunity to be very bold, so the Africans should be very bold in really telling the president what challenges remain [and] how some of our U.S. initiatives can be improved. From PEPFAR, to AGOA, to the Malaria Initiative, to our [U.S. Agency for International Development] programs -- we need to have some serious discussions and not merely symbolism and photo ops -- as important as they might be."
Whitaker said she hoped the Africans call for a "stronger AGOA because we are in agreement that trade and investment are the most effective tools for poverty alleviation.”
"I would hope that they would encourage and inspire the president to use his remaining time in office to get an AGOA passed" that would make the trade act permanent and include tax incentives and a serious trade-capacity-building initiative, she said.
