2006年VOA标准英语-Fruit Flies Present New Threat to African Crops

By Phuong Tran
Dakar, Senegal
22 November 2006

Discovered three years ago in Kenya, an Asian fruit fly species is spreading throughout Africa, posing a threat to crops and livelihoods¹. Farmers and government officials are starting to devise strategies to combat the epidemic². For VOA, Phuong Tran reports from Dakar.

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Mamadou Hane on his family's mango farm, next to a fly trap filled with pesticide³
Here on Djibril Mamadou Hane's family farm in Niague, 50 kilometers northeast of Dakar, he lost more than half of his mango crop to fruit flies this year. His grove⁴ is barren of fruit, the harvest ending a month earlier than usual this year.

Hane says the problem is catastrophic. He lost one third of his crop in 2005, and more than half in 2006.

Hane is not alone. In meetings across Dakar, producers, exporters, researchers and government officials express their concern that mangos, which constitute more than 60 percent of Senegal's fruit production, are being threatened by Bactrocera invadens, an Asian fruit fly first discovered in Kenya in 2003.

The mission of saving Senegal's mangos by educating the public about this newest invader⁵ is bringing together farmers and elected officials, fruit packers and exporters, vendors⁶ and consumers of Senegal's mangos.

"Mango is a food item that the common man consumes every day," said Patrick Nugawela, the business development advisor⁷ for USAID, an American government economic development program, which is supporting the Senegalese government and private sectors⁹' battle against fruit flies. "Mango is a fruit that is important to the food security of the country," he noted¹⁰. "It is the most affordable¹¹, it is the most consumed fruit in the country at less than one dollar per kilo."

Also at stake is economic security, says Nugawela. By his calculations, almost 25,000 are directly employed in Senegal's mango sector⁸.

"The mango industry, there is a wide spectrum¹² of people depending on it," he said. "So the mango flies is affecting everyone across the spectrum, from the producer to the exporter."

 
Man shows fruit flies found in Senegal
In interviews with farmers across Dakar, their alarm is evident. Papa Amadou Diour with the African Consortium of Agriculture Development, lost one third of his crop to fruit flies last year.

"We lose 30 percent of our harvest because fruit flies are very difficult to control," he explained. "It's getting to be a state of emergency. We only have mangoes. And if we don't succeed in mango exportation, we are not going to make any money."

Last year, 60,000 metric tons of mangos were produced in Senegal, valued at almost $10 million (US). Four-thousand tons were exported, mostly to the European Union, which was worth a little over $4 million (US).

People linked to the mango industry fear that fruit revenues will drop if the region does not control the fruit fly population .

"Senegal is not isolated," said Mbaye Diaye, coordinator¹³ of the Fruit Fly Program in Senegal's Department of Agriculture. "Senegal alone cannot combat fruit flies, it requires a regional approach."

Mamadou Hane, the general manager of the Niague family farm surveys his family's 48 hectares of mangos, which eight farmers work at year round. He himself makes $80 (US) a month overseeing the workers. During harvest season, he hires up to 10 more, in addition to people to harvest, pack, wash, and transport them to the local market or to shipping¹⁴ centers for exports. His father started planting mangos in 1978, but this year's losses make him question next year's plans for the farm.

Speaking in Senegal's local Wolof language, he says that of course, he is afraid of losing the family farm.

1 livelihoods   

生计，谋生之道( livelihood的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• First came the earliest individualistic pioneers who depended on hunting and fishing for their livelihoods. 走在最前面的是早期的个人主义先驱者，他们靠狩猎捕鱼为生。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件
• With little influence over policies, their traditional livelihoods are threatened. 因为马赛族人对政策的影响力太小，他们的传统生计受到了威胁。

2 epidemic   

n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的

参考例句：

• That kind of epidemic disease has long been stamped out.那种传染病早已绝迹。
• The authorities tried to localise the epidemic.当局试图把流行病限制在局部范围。

3 pesticide   

n.杀虫剂，农药

参考例句：

• The pesticide was spread over the vegetable plot.菜田里撒上了农药。
• This pesticide is diluted with water and applied directly to the fields.这种杀虫剂用水稀释后直接施用在田里。

4 grove   

n.林子，小树林，园林

参考例句：

• On top of the hill was a grove of tall trees.山顶上一片高大的树林。
• The scent of lemons filled the grove.柠檬香味充满了小树林。

5 invader   

n.侵略者，侵犯者，入侵者

参考例句：

• They suffered a lot under the invader's heel.在侵略者的铁蹄下，他们受尽了奴役。
• A country must have the will to repel any invader.一个国家得有决心击退任何入侵者。

6 vendors   

n.摊贩( vendor的名词复数 )；小贩；（房屋等的）卖主；卖方

参考例句：

• The vendors were gazundered at the last minute. 卖主在最后一刻被要求降低房价。
• At the same time, interface standards also benefIt'software vendors. 同时，界面标准也有利于软件开发商。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

7 advisor   

n.顾问，指导老师，劝告者

参考例句：

• They employed me as an advisor.他们聘请我当顾问。
• The professor is engaged as a technical advisor.这位教授被聘请为技术顾问。

8 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

9 sectors   

n.部门( sector的名词复数 )；领域；防御地区；扇形

参考例句：

• Berlin was divided into four sectors after the war. 战后柏林分成了4 个区。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Industry and agriculture are the two important sectors of the national economy. 工业和农业是国民经济的两个重要部门。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

10 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

11 affordable   

adj.支付得起的，不太昂贵的

参考例句：

• The rent for the four-roomed house is affordable.四居室房屋的房租付得起。
• There are few affordable apartments in big cities.在大城市中没有几所公寓是便宜的。

12 spectrum   

n.谱，光谱，频谱；范围，幅度，系列

参考例句：

• This is a kind of atomic spectrum.这是一种原子光谱。
• We have known much of the constitution of the solar spectrum.关于太阳光谱的构成，我们已了解不少。

13 coordinator   

n.协调人

参考例句：

• The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, headed by the Emergency Relief Coordinator, coordinates all UN emergency relief. 联合国人道主义事务协调厅在紧急救济协调员领导下，负责协调联合国的所有紧急救济工作。
• How am I supposed to find the client-relations coordinator? 我怎么才能找到客户关系协调员的办公室？

14 shipping   

n.船运（发货，运输，乘船）

参考例句：

• We struck a bargain with an American shipping firm.我们和一家美国船运公司谈成了一笔生意。
• There's a shipping charge of ￡5 added to the price.价格之外另加五英镑运输费。