President Bush is scheduled to make his first stop on his Africa tour in the small West African country of Benin. A brief airport meeting is planned Saturday with his counterpart Boni Yayi, to discuss aid and the fight against diseases, like HIV/AIDS and malaria. Although the visit will be brief, expectations are high among residents of the capital Cotonou, as VOA's Nico Colombant reports from our regional bureau in Dakar.

On 28 June the World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors approved an International Development Association (IDA) credit[1]of US$40 million to support Benin’s poverty reduction strategy.