For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
April 21, 2001
Fact Sheet President's Speech at the Summit of the Americas
"We have a great vision before us: a fully democratic hemisphere, bound
together by good will and free trade. That is a tall
order. It is also the chance of a lifetime. And
it is the responsibility we share."
President George W. Bush
April 21, 2001
On April 21, 2001 President Bush, attending the third Summit of the
Americas, with 33 other Western Hemisphere leaders in Quebec, Canada,
outlined his vision for making this the Century of the
Americas. The President stressed the importance of
strengthened relations between the United States and the other nations
of the Hemisphere, and the imperative of democracy. In his
speech, the President introduced his Administration's
initiatives that aim to strengthen democracy, facilitate free trade,
and promote human capital development throughout the
Hemisphere. The President
highlighted the following themes and initiatives:
- Democracy: Strengthening democratic governance is a focus
of the Summit of the Americas process. The leaders of the
hemisphere are committed to promoting the rule of law and democratic
institutions such as independent judiciaries, reliable electoral
systems, dependable law enforcement organizations, and efficient
banking and social services.
- Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA): The FTAA will
extend the benefits of free trade to countries throughout the
Hemisphere. When completed, the FTAA will be the largest
free trade area in the world, with a combined GDP of more that $10
trillion and 800 million people. The Bush Administration is
committed to concluding FTAA negotiations by January 2005
and to implement the agreement no later than December
2005. The President will seek Trade Promotion Authority
(TPA) from the U.S. Congress to enable his Administration to negotiate
trade agreements more easily.
- Third Border Initiative: The Caribbean is the often
overlooked "third border" of the United States. The Bush
Administration is launching a "Third Border Initiative" in an effort to
deepen cooperation between the United States and the Caribbean nations,
particularly on issues such as HIV/AIDS, disaster mitigation, and law
enforcement. Cooperation and collaboration on these issues
will enhance the economic development and integration of the Caribbean
nations.
- Andean Regional Initiative: In order to promote stability
and democracy in the Andean region, the President's FY02 budget request
includes $882 million in international affairs funding for democratic
institution building and development assistance, as well as
counter-drug programs, for the seven countries included in the
initiative: Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Panama, Peru and
Venezuela. Renewal of the Andean Trade Preference Act (ATPA)
is an integral part of the Andean Initiative. This
legislation has been successful in providing trade-based economic
alternatives to narcotics trafficking in Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, and
Colombia.
- Hemispheric Centers for Teacher Excellence: Teaching and
literacy are the foundation for development and
democracy. The United States will sponsor the creation of
three Centers for Teacher Excellence throughout the
hemisphere to provide teacher training for improving literacy and
basic education. The objectives of the initiative are to
boost teacher quality and to improve the quality of instruction in the
classroom, with special emphasis on the poorer
countries. The program will create an Internet Portal
linking teacher training institutions, think tanks, schools, and
universities so that they can share materials, "best practices" and
"lessons learned."
- American Fellows Program: The new American Fellows Program
is intended to promote mutual understanding and excellence in
government within the Hemisphere through reciprocal, one-year exchanges
of outstanding mid-to-senior grade officials in government agencies of
participating countries. Argentina has already agreed to
participate and we are in discussions with other governments.
- Inter-American E-Business Fellowship Program: Given the
emergence of the
Internet and the global information economy, the Bush Administration
believes it is important to empower people to take advantage of digital
opportunities. The President announced the creation of a
Inter-American E-Business Fellowship Program to give young
professionals throughout the Hemisphere the opportunity to learn
information technology while working at
U.S. companies. The program will provide professionals with
the technological tools needed to meet the demands of the new economy
in their own societies.
- Tropical Forest Conservation Act: The President is
committed to protecting the Hemisphere's natural resources. The
President supports the Tropical Forest Conservation Act to allow
nations of the Hemisphere to exchange debt reduction or restructuring
for tropical forest conservation. As the program
demonstrates success, President Bush is prepared to work with Congress
to boost its funding.
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