Reflecting On Bush’s Global Health, Foreign Policy Initiatives In Africa

In this Brookings Institution opinion, Mwangi Kimenyi, director of the Africa Growth Initiative (AGI), and Jessica Smith, a research assistant at AGI, reflect on George W. Bush's four-day tour of Tanzania, Zambia and Ethiopia, and the efforts he undertook in Africa while in office, writing, "Bush's record tends to be underrated." The authors highlight PEPFAR, the President's Malaria Initiative (PMI), and Bush's "push for the G-8 nations to demand the multi-lateral debt relief initiative (MDRI)," concluding, "Reflecting on President Bush's initiatives shows that he has not received due credit for his support of Africa and African issues and, despite the misconception that he focused only on terrorism and national security, his commitment to Africa leaves a strong legacy that is difficult to ignore" (12/5).