[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 35, Number 8 (Monday, March 1, 1999)]
[Pages 288-289]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks at a Welcoming Ceremony for President Jerry John Rawlings of 
Ghana

February 24, 1999

    President and Mrs. Rawlings, distinguished members of the Ghanaian 
delegation, my fellow Americans. Mr. President, Hillary and I are 
delighted to welcome you and Mrs. Rawlings to the United States. Nearly 
a year ago, your country gave us a greeting I will always remember. On 
that great day, it was over 100 degrees fahrenheit--[laughter]--and we 
had a half million people in Independence Square in Accra. We thought we 
should arrange a similar meeting here today. [Laughter]
    Actually, for the South Grounds of the White House, we have a large 
crowd of people, young and old, from all parts of America, including a 
significant number of people whose roots are in your country. And in our 
hearts, our welcome is warm. In Independence Square, before the largest 
crowd I had ever addressed, I learned the meaning of akwaaba, your word 
for ``welcome.'' It was also written on billboards and on posters, and 
unforgettably written in the faces of all the Ghanaian people we saw. 
Mr. President, Mrs. Rawlings, it gives me great pleasure to say to you 
this morning, akwaaba. Welcome to the United States.
    Our trip to Ghana marked an important step forward for Africa and 
the United States, symbolizing a new beginning for both of us, a 
partnership built on mutual respect and mutual benefit. On our part, it 
signaled to the world our respect for Africa's achievements and 
aspirations after centuries of colonialism and decades of cold war. On 
Africa's part, it signaled your readiness to work with us to forge a 
better future of open societies and shared responsibilities.

[[Page 289]]

    Mr. President, under your leadership, Ghana has continued to 
flourish. It remains a vivid example of what democracy and open markets 
can do for the African people. Over the past 5 years, your economy has 
grown steadily. You have an independent judiciary, a lively Parliament, 
a thriving civil society.
    Ghana is a partner with other African nations, seeking to preserve 
peace in the region, in Liberia and Sierra Leone, where you support the 
ECOMOG regional peacekeeping forces, and through your partnership in the 
Africa Crisis Response Initiative. You also send peacekeepers to other 
spots far from home, from Lebanon to the former Yugoslavia. And for 
that, we are grateful.
    The United States needs strong partners like Ghana. It is no secret 
that hard challenges lie ahead for Africa. Recent headlines have 
described the continuing upheaval caused by terrorism, civil war, 
military aggression, the senseless cruelty suffered by innocent people 
caught in a web of violence. Clearly, there remains much to be done. But 
equally clearly, these headlines do not tell the full story of Africa, 
of more than 700 million people who want what people the world over 
want: to work, to raise a family, to live a full life, to bring a better 
future to their children.
    A year after my trip to Africa, it is important to highlight what 
the headlines often don't: the hard work of the African people toward 
these lofty goals, the progress we are making in spite of setbacks. In 
Ghana, as in other African nations, we are deepening our link through 
growing trade and investment, air travel and Internet access. I look 
forward to discussing this progress with the President and to talking 
about how we can build on it.
    Something else of far-reaching importance is happening in Africa, 
something unthinkable last year when I visited Accra. Three days from 
now there will be a democratic Presidential election in Africa's most 
populous country, Nigeria. For 28 of its 38 years of independence, 
Nigeria has been run by military dictators. Now it has a chance to start 
anew.
    The friendship between Ghana and the United States grows deeper 
every year. Ghana received our very first Peace Corps volunteers in 
1961, and nearly four decades later, new Peace Corps volunteers still 
make a difference there. Across a wide range of common endeavors, our 
nations cooperate and learn together. More and more Ghanaians are coming 
to America to help us build our future. More and more Americans visit 
Ghana and the rest of the continent to understand the history that binds 
us together.
    Mr. President, your visit underscores the debt all Americans owe to 
Ghana and to Africa for the brilliant contributions that African-
Americans have made and continue to make to the United States.
    The writer and crusader, W.E.B. Du Bois, was a citizen of both Ghana 
and the United States. Near the end of his life, he wrote his great-
grandson that his very long life had taught him two things: first, that 
progress sometimes will be painfully slow and, second, that we must 
forge ahead anyway because, and I quote, ``the difference between 100 
and 1,000 years is less than you now think.'' He concluded, ``doing what 
must be done, that is eternal.''
    Mr. President, you have done so much of what must be done. It will 
live eternally, and we will be eternally grateful for the friendship 
between our two nations. Let us extend it in the new century for the new 
millennium.
    Mr. President, Mrs. Rawlings, welcome to the United States.

Note: The President spoke at 10:15 a.m. on the South Lawn at the White 
House, where President Rawlings was accorded a formal welcome with full 
military honors. In his remarks, he referred to President Rawling's 
wife, Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings. The President also referred to the 
Economic Community of West African States Monitoring Group (ECOMOG). The 
transcript made available by the Office of the Press Secretary also 
included the remarks of President Rawlings.