ENHANCING GHANA-US TIES

A MAJOR highlight of the visit of the US President, Mr George Walker Bush, was a joint press conference with his host, President J. A. Kufuor, at the Castle, Osu, during which he raised a number of important issues concerning his trip.
One of the critical issues Mr Bush dealt with was to dispel any suggestions that the United States had plans to build new military bases across Africa, with the view to expanding its military presence on the continent. Mr Bush said the idea that he was currently visiting Africa looking for sites for US bases was “baloney”.
He said the new command, Africom, was to provide African states with military training and assistance so that they could handle Africa's problems better.
The Daily Graphic hopes that the explanation by Mr Bush on this matter, which has been drummed up by some commentators, will finally put the issue to rest. We recall that when the issue first came up a year or so ago, the government was quick to state categorically that there was no iota of truth in the claim. But it was not to end there.
Indeed, days to Mr Bush’s visit to the country, the matter somehow resurfaced on many media fronts, with some commentators suggesting that it was one of the hidden agenda of the US President’s trip. Nothing could, therefore, be more gratifying than the assurance from Mr Bush himself that America had no such plans.
It is now clear that the real agenda for Mr Bush’s visit are three-fold: one, to engage in talks on economic development; two, to review progress made in the fight against HIV/AIDS and, three, to help fight malaria and tropical diseases. The visit was also intended to strengthen ties between the two countries.
And to give real meaning to his intentions, Mr Bush yesterday announced a grant of $17m to help the government in the fight against malaria and a $350m five-year plan to fight what he described as “neglected tropical diseases” such as hookworm or river blindness.
Malaria has plagued mankind since ancient times and these days it is said to threaten 40 per cent of the world's population, mostly in poor tropical and sub-tropical countries.
Such a significant injection of capital from the US will, no doubt, go a long way in our efforts at fighting malaria and President Kufuor hit the nail right on the head when he said, “we pledge to support research with some of the money and also infuse efforts we’ve already started.”
On the economic front, Ghana is receiving $547m in funds under the Millennium Challenge Account, a US initiative which assists governments with good governance record to fight poverty.
For us, this trip is very worthwhile. Not only will it go a long way to deepen the friendly relations between our two nations but also it has given Mr Bush the unique opportunity to demonstrate further his commitment to help Ghana and other African states to meet challenges that confront them.
It is an over-simplification of the visit to say that self-interest inspired Mr Bush to visit Africa. National interest is a key element in the foreign policy of any country, but in a globalised world relations founded on mutual respect are likely to endure and promote sustainable partnerships, instead of handouts from the developed world.
We are convinced that Bush’s visit will yield positive results and complement the government’s efforts at promoting good governance, reducing poverty and enhancing human resource empowerment.
The Daily Graphic believes that the visit will also place Mr Bush in a better position to appreciate the development challenges facing African countries in order to throw his full weight behind global initiatives to reverse the trend.
It is hoped that the outcome of the business and diplomatic interaction during the visit will facilitate Ghana’s efforts at attaining a middle income status by 2015.