President George W. Bush is honoring Ghana's president, John Kufuor, with a rare state dinner during Kufuor's state visit next month.

The Sept. 15 gala will be only the sixth for Bush in his almost eight years in the White House.

Kufuor is an Oxford-educated leader who came into power about the same time Bush did. Kufuor is given credit for economic improvements in Ghana, open government and regional leadership. Ghana, working through the United Nations, has sent peacekeepers to Lebanon, Afghanistan, Rwanda, Pakistan and the Balkans.

Kufuor and his wife, Theresa, will get the full blast of White House pomp and ceremony, with herald trumpets and a South Lawn welcoming ceremony featuring the U.S. Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps. Kufuor gave a state dinner for Bush when he visited Accra in February.

"The United States and Ghana enjoy warm relations and a shared commitment to promote peace and prosperity in Africa and throughout the world," a White House statement said in announcing Kufuor's visit. "The two presidents will discuss efforts to combat malaria and neglected tropical diseases, as well as Ghana's efforts to promote democratic values, peace and stability in Africa."

Bush's five previous state dinners were for former presidents Vicente Fox of Mexico and Aleksander Kwasniewski of Poland; and presidents Mwai Kibaki of Kenya and Gloria Macapagal Arroyo of the Philippines; and Britain's Queen Elizabeth II and her husband, Prince Philip.


Source: AP