Obama highlights African aid issues

US president Barack Obama has called on Africans to make "responsible choices" about halting the spread of disease on the continent.

In a speech in the Ghanaian capital Accra at the weekend, Mr Obama talked about various aspects of African life as well as the relationship between the USA and African countries.

While explaining new approaches to aid, such as the new $3.5 billion food security initiative, the president stressed that "aid is not an end in itself" and called for Africans to help themselves, before continuing this theme into healthcare.

"Individual Africans also have to make responsible choices that prevent the spread of disease, while promoting public health in their communities and countries," he said.

However, Mr Obama did acknowledge that primary care and basic prevention are hit by the fact that - "because of incentives" - many African doctors and nurses either work overseas or for programmes that concentrate on an individual disease.

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