D.C. Diary: Our fearless leader in Tanzania

Next time we are in Dar es Salaam, I'm definitely going to get hold of one of these kangas:

I was initially pretty cynical when I read about Bush's visit to Africa, but there is no doubt that trip has served to raise awareness of infant mortality from malaria and HIV in the region; there has been a huge amount of coverage of his tour in the press here. Malaria is the biggest cause of death amongst children under five in Africa - killing over 1million every year, and 100,000 people annually in Tanzania. As part of his $1.2 billion Malaria Initiative, Bush has promised that 5.2 million mosquito bed nets will be distributed within Tanzania within the next 6 months. That's enough for every child between the ages of 1 and 5 in the country. Since 2003, Bush has also provided $818 million to help in the fight against HIV/AIDS in Tanzania, as part of his PEPFAR initiative. Whatever one's view on the abstinence debate (and I can see why the Democrats are opposing the ABC approach, but this type of initiative has had great success in Uganda), this is a lot of cash to a country like Tanzania and George Bush is popular amongst Tanzanians, who are grateful for the funding he has given to tackle the disease.

And there are encouraging signs that this funding is part of a wider, sustainable development programme. On Sunday, Presidents Bush and Kikewte signed a five-year, $698 million Millenium Challenge Compact, which aims to reduce poverty 'by increasing household incomes through investments in transportation, energy and water'. This grant is the largest in the history of the programme, which supports developing countries who show a commitment to fighting corruption and embracing democratic priciples and sound economic policies. I know it sounds trite but, whatever one's political persuasions, this level of funding this does make a difference in a country where it is estimated there will be over 2 million AIDS orphans by 2010. Tanzania faces an impossible future without outside help and I fervently hope that these kangas won't be the only lasting legacy of Bush's visit.