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| OBAMA |
Obama, president of America
will unveil a new initiative to expand access to power in sub-Saharan Africa on
Sunday, in a speech that will point to Nelson
Mandela’s work as evidence of the potential for rapid transformation on the
continent.
Obama's initiative, dubbed Power Africa, will attempt to double
the number of people with access to electricity in sub-Saharan Africa, White House officials said. The president will
announce an initial commitment of $7 billion over five years, federal money
that will add to private investment and partnerships in six African countries.
The first phase will aim to expand access to 20 million households and
businesses, officials said.
More than two-thirds of the population of sub-Saharan Africa has no access to power, a figure that is far higher in rural areas, according to the White House.
The Power Africa program is part of the administration's answer to
such criticism. Obama also will announce plans to host a summit of leaders from
sub-Saharan Africa next year, officials said, and he will discuss his
administration's commitment to supporting Bush-era health programs aimed at
fighting HIV/AIDS.
Obama will make the announcement in a speech at the University of Cape Town, after visiting the Robben Island prison cell where Mandela spent 18 of his 27 years as a political prisoner. As the iconic civil rights leader lies gravely ill in a Pretoria hospital, Obama has paid tribute to Mandela and his legacy at each stop of a weeklong tour of Africa. His power initiative too will be cast as guided by the Mandela model, said deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes.
Rhodes said "His example is the ultimate testament to how change can happen within countries and beyond countries' borders,".
The speech will also honor the imprint of an American political figure, Rhodes said. The University of Cape Town was the site of Sen. Robert Kennedy's 1966 "ripples of hope" speech, a call for racial equality in a South Africa then ruled by a white minority.
On his first tour of the continent as president, Obama has been charged with neglecting Africa in his first term, allowing other countries -- most notably China -- to rush in with new investment.
The president is due to
visit an HIV clinic run by the Desmond
Tutu Foundation before the speech Sunday.Obama will make the announcement in a speech at the University of Cape Town, after visiting the Robben Island prison cell where Mandela spent 18 of his 27 years as a political prisoner. As the iconic civil rights leader lies gravely ill in a Pretoria hospital, Obama has paid tribute to Mandela and his legacy at each stop of a weeklong tour of Africa. His power initiative too will be cast as guided by the Mandela model, said deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes.
Rhodes said "His example is the ultimate testament to how change can happen within countries and beyond countries' borders,".
The speech will also honor the imprint of an American political figure, Rhodes said. The University of Cape Town was the site of Sen. Robert Kennedy's 1966 "ripples of hope" speech, a call for racial equality in a South Africa then ruled by a white minority.
On his first tour of the continent as president, Obama has been charged with neglecting Africa in his first term, allowing other countries -- most notably China -- to rush in with new investment.