U.S. President George Bush hosts a summit on internationaldevelopment Tuesday in Washington. The summit is expected to focus onthe administration's core principles that have transformed the U.S. approach tointernational development by linking development assistance to results.
Amongthose attending Tuesday's summit are U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice,musician and activist Bob Geldof and Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.President Sirleaf is expected to introduce President Bush for his remarks.
Lawrence Bropleh is Liberia's minister of information. He told VOA the special invitation to President Sirleaf is an indication ofPresident Bush's admiration for the Liberian President and her style ofgovernance.
"PresidentBush believes that Liberia, underPresident Sirleaf's integral leadership is quickly becoming a post-conflictsuccess story. The United States has got long-standing relationship withLiberia, has invested a lot in Liberia's recovery through its funding of theUnited Nations mission in Liberia, and because of the kind of leadership thatPresident Sirleaf has brought, the World Bank has talked about her governancestyle, about her fight on corruption, and it has increased the kind ofattention that Liberia has gotten. And President Bush appreciates that, and sohe believes that as he's about to leave office, it would be a good thing tohave one more visit from President in other to talk about where Liberia isgoing and how the United States can continue to be a key partner in Liberia'sdevelopment," he said.
PresidentSirleaf, who according to the White House will be introducing President Bush,will speak on the importance of country ownership and good governance.
Broplehsaid President will talk about good governance as the landmark of any nation intrying to be post-conflict success story.
PresidentSirleaf will talk about Liberia's journey and how we have tried to change thelandscape in terms of our own reforms, in terms of the governance that has comeout of Liberia, trying to fight corruption, trying to decentralize power. Shewill be sharing Liberia's story and linking it to the rest of the world,"Bropleh said.
PresidentBush will leave office January 2009, and Bropleh could not say whether the Bushadministration whether President Bush has made promises to the Liberia thathave yet to be fulfilled.