DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania — With old and young providing testament to the success of a U.S.-funded effort to fight AIDS, President Bush on Sunday called for Congress to renew the program quickly and said helping Africa was in the national and moral interests of the United States.
The program provides readier access to antiretroviral drugs, easing the impact of the disease on many. But it also puts a strong focus on premarital sexual abstinence, drawing criticism from the Institute of Medicine and the Government Accountability Office, which have said such reliance limits the program’s reach.
However, Bush said, Congress should “see what works.”
“It is a balanced program. It is an ABC program: abstinence, be faithful, and condoms. It’s a program that’s been proven effective,” he said at a news conference with Tanzanian President Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, an enthusiastic supporter of the effort.
With the five-year authorization for the President’s Emergency Fund for AIDS Relief coming to an end this year, Bush has asked that the funding be increased from the $18 billion spent so far to $30 billion for the next five. The administration had hoped Congress would renew the program by the end of 2007 as a sign of support and continuity. Its eventual renewal is not expected.
Bush is in the midst of a six-day, five-country trip across Africa’s midsection, intended to highlight the fight against AIDS and malaria, and to encourage political and tribal reconciliation and economic progress.
“It’s in our national interest that America help deal with hopelessness,” Bush said.
