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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
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| Bush set for second African tour | Bush set for second African tour |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| US President George W Bush is starting a tour of Africa in an effort to highlight aid projects. | US President George W Bush is starting a tour of Africa in an effort to highlight aid projects. |
| He will first visit the West African nation of Benin, before moving on to Tanzania, Rwanda, Ghana and Liberia. | He will first visit the West African nation of Benin, before moving on to Tanzania, Rwanda, Ghana and Liberia. |
| Mr Bush will witness the impact of the US-funded HIV/Aids initiative, for which he has requested an extra $30bn. | |
| The emphasis will be on development, but trade policy, military bases and competition from China are also expected to be on the agenda. | The emphasis will be on development, but trade policy, military bases and competition from China are also expected to be on the agenda. |
| In a BBC interview, the US president defended his stance on the Sudanese region of Darfur, where at least 200,000 people have died and two million been displaced in a five-year conflict. | In a BBC interview, the US president defended his stance on the Sudanese region of Darfur, where at least 200,000 people have died and two million been displaced in a five-year conflict. |
| I've got a firm, heartfelt commitment to the continent of Africa President George W Bush Full interview transcriptBush interview: Your reaction | I've got a firm, heartfelt commitment to the continent of Africa President George W Bush Full interview transcriptBush interview: Your reaction |
| He said he had decided not to send troops to the region, despite what he called a genocide taking place there, partly out of the desire not to send US troops into another Muslim country. | He said he had decided not to send troops to the region, despite what he called a genocide taking place there, partly out of the desire not to send US troops into another Muslim country. |
| He said the US had imposed sanctions on Sudanese leaders and companies, and that he would remind the president of China "that he can do more to relieve the suffering in Darfur". | He said the US had imposed sanctions on Sudanese leaders and companies, and that he would remind the president of China "that he can do more to relieve the suffering in Darfur". |
| This is Mr Bush's second presidential tour of Africa, following his first in 2003. He is accompanied by his wife, Laura. | This is Mr Bush's second presidential tour of Africa, following his first in 2003. He is accompanied by his wife, Laura. |
| They will visit hospitals, schools and businesses, hoping to show how US investment in health and development programmes has made a real difference to Africans. | They will visit hospitals, schools and businesses, hoping to show how US investment in health and development programmes has made a real difference to Africans. |
| Unfair trade? | Unfair trade? |
| US aid to Africa has grown rapidly since Mr Bush entered the White House in 2001. Billions of dollars have been pumped into programmes supplying anti-retroviral drugs to Aids patients. | US aid to Africa has grown rapidly since Mr Bush entered the White House in 2001. Billions of dollars have been pumped into programmes supplying anti-retroviral drugs to Aids patients. |
| PRESIDENT BUSH'S ITINERARY Benin - Cotonou: arrival ceremony, meets president Tanzania - Dar-es-Salaam: meets president, tours hospital; Arusha: tours hospital, textile mill and girls' schoolRwanda - Kigali: meets president, visits genocide memorial Ghana - Accra: meets president, state dinner Liberia - Monrovia: meets president, visits university 'Mercy and realism' on visitRice to visit Kenya | PRESIDENT BUSH'S ITINERARY Benin - Cotonou: arrival ceremony, meets president Tanzania - Dar-es-Salaam: meets president, tours hospital; Arusha: tours hospital, textile mill and girls' schoolRwanda - Kigali: meets president, visits genocide memorial Ghana - Accra: meets president, state dinner Liberia - Monrovia: meets president, visits university 'Mercy and realism' on visitRice to visit Kenya |
| President Bush will meet HIV positive people now making a great deal of their lives thanks to the life-saving drugs, which the President's Emergency Plan for Aids Relief has helped to fund. | President Bush will meet HIV positive people now making a great deal of their lives thanks to the life-saving drugs, which the President's Emergency Plan for Aids Relief has helped to fund. |
| But there are many questions over the effectiveness of the US Aids programme, says the BBC's international development correspondent David Loyn. | But there are many questions over the effectiveness of the US Aids programme, says the BBC's international development correspondent David Loyn. |
| There may also be criticism of US trade policy, which international aid agencies say undermine struggling African economies. | There may also be criticism of US trade policy, which international aid agencies say undermine struggling African economies. |
| Benin relies on cotton production, for instance - but cannot compete with US cotton because of the large subsidies paid to US farmers. | Benin relies on cotton production, for instance - but cannot compete with US cotton because of the large subsidies paid to US farmers. |
| "If George Bush comes here without something concrete to say about our everyday livelihood, he needn't bother," Beninese cotton grower Ali Assi Mabdou told the news agency AFP. | "If George Bush comes here without something concrete to say about our everyday livelihood, he needn't bother," Beninese cotton grower Ali Assi Mabdou told the news agency AFP. |
| Analysts say Mr Bush may also be concerned with countering the influence of China - which has been doing billions of dollars worth of trade deals in Africa. | Analysts say Mr Bush may also be concerned with countering the influence of China - which has been doing billions of dollars worth of trade deals in Africa. |
| Also likely to be on the agenda during the six-day trip is the location of a new American military command headquarters, known as Africom, whose primary role, according to Mr Bush, will be to work with African militaries to deal with trafficking or terror. | Also likely to be on the agenda during the six-day trip is the location of a new American military command headquarters, known as Africom, whose primary role, according to Mr Bush, will be to work with African militaries to deal with trafficking or terror. |
| So far, Liberia is the only nation to have offered to host the US base. There are already some 1,700 US troops in Djibouti. | So far, Liberia is the only nation to have offered to host the US base. There are already some 1,700 US troops in Djibouti. |
| Correspondents say the idea of an increased US military presence makes regional powers such as South Africa and Nigeria wary. | Correspondents say the idea of an increased US military presence makes regional powers such as South Africa and Nigeria wary. |