VOA慢速英语2019 南非严重干旱致数百万人挨饿（在线收听）

Deadly Drought in Southern Africa Leaves Millions Hungry

A months-long drought affecting most of southern Africa has led to serious food shortages for millions of people.

持续数月的干旱影响了南非大部分地区，导致数百万人面临严重食物短缺。

The United Nations estimates that more than 11 million people are currently facing crisis levels of food insecurity. The World Food Program says southern Africa has received normal rainfall in just one of the past five growing seasons.

联合国估计，目前有超过1100万人面临粮食无保障的危机水平。世界粮食计划署称，在过去五个生长季中，南非只有一个生长季的降雨量正常。

Among the hardest hit areas is South Africa's Northern Cape province. There, many farmers are struggling to keep their families and animals alive as they lose money and debt grows.

受灾最严重的地区是南非的北开普省。当地的许多农民在亏损和债务增加的情况下仍在努力维持其家庭和牲畜的生存。

Sheep farmer Louis van der Merwe told The Associated Press he had lost more than 400 sheep and 450 springboks over the past two years. He said the current drought is the worst he has seen during his 45 years of farming.

养羊场的农民路易斯·范·德·默维（Louis van der Merwe）告诉美联社，在过去两年中，他已经损失了400多只羊和450只跳羚。他说，目前的干旱是他务农45年以来最严重的一次。

Some of his animals died of hunger. Others were harvested earlier than normal to reduce the number of animals he had to feed. Van der Merwe got emotional while explaining that he now accepts donations of animal feed so he can keep the rest of his animals alive.

他饲养的一些牲畜死于饥饿。其他牲畜会提前宰杀，以减少不得不喂养的牲畜数量。范德默尔激动地表示，他现在接受动物饲料的捐赠，这样他就可以使其余的牲畜活下来。

"If we didn't have hope, we would not be here anymore," he said. "We have to have hope and faith. There are a couple of times when we have felt it is not worth it."

他说：“如果失去了希望，我们就不会在这里了。”“我们必须要有希望和信念，有几次我们一度觉得不值得。”

One farmers' organization estimates that South Africa's Northern Cape province will need at least $28 million over the next three months to assist 15,500 affected farms. So far, South Africa's government has promised $2 million.

一个农民组织估计，南非的北开普省在未来三个月至少需要2800万美元资金，以援助1.55万个受影响的农场。到目前为止，南非政府已承诺提供200万美元。

Gertruida Buffel lives in the Northern Cape town of Vosburg. She told the AP that things have gotten so bad that she now shares her family's food with their animals.

Gertruida Buffel居住在北开普省的沃斯堡镇。她告诉美联社，形势变得如此糟糕，她现在将家人的食物分享给牲畜。

For two weeks, she fed two small lambs a mixture of dried corn and water after their mother starved to death. But she said one lamb ended up dying, likely because the corn mixture was not part of the lambs' usual diet.

在母羊饿死后的两周内，她用干玉米和水的混合物喂养两只小羊羔。但她说，一只小羊最终死了，可能是因为玉米混合物不属于小羊正常饮食。

Small children are hungry, too. At Vosburg's only school, Delta Primary School, large groups of children line up every morning for what becomes both breakfast and lunch. The meal usually includes corn meal, vegetables and soup.

孩子们也饱受饥饿之苦。在沃斯堡唯一的德尔塔小学，每天早上都有大批儿童排队吃早餐和午餐。餐食通常包括玉米粉、蔬菜和汤。

The school food program began before the drought. But teachers say it has become increasingly important for the town's struggling families. "It's very hard for the parents to actually feed their children at home," one teacher said.

学校的粮食计划是在干旱前开始的。但是老师们指出，这对于该镇苦苦挣扎的家庭来说变得越来越重要。一位老师称：“父母很难保证孩子们在家里吃饱饭。”

In Kimberley, the capital of Northern Cape, government officials give out money from the $2-million disaster aid program. The job can be difficult because some farmers live in places that are not easy to get to.

在北开普省首府金伯利，政府官员从200万美元的救灾援助项目中拨款。这项工作可能很困难，因为一些农民居住在不容易到达的偏远地区。

Farmers Jan Louw and Martiens Tieties are among those hoping to receive government-provided animal feed. But they are not expecting any assistance until January. Until then, they plan to keep sharing feed with other farmers to keep their animals alive.

扬·卢和马丁·蒂蒂等农民希望获得政府提供的动物饲料。但他们预计在明年一月份之前不会得到任何援助。在此之前，他们计划继续与其他农民共享饲料，以保证牲畜的生命。

Words in This Story

drought - a long period of time during which there is very little or no rain

province – areas that some countries are divided into

faith – n. complete trust or confidence in someone or something