2006年VOA标准英语-Women's Health an Obstacle to Reducing Poverty

By Jordan Davis Dakar 17 October 2006     Nomad1 woman stand in a food line at a village near the small town of Dakoro, Niger" src="/upimg/allimg/070504/1131480.jpg" width="210" border="0" /> Nomad woman stand in a food line at a village near the small town of Dakoro, Niger           As the international community marks World Poverty Day Tuesday, health experts say one of the keys to reducing poverty is improving maternal2 health care for women. The problem is particularly serious in Africa where an estimated 700 women die each day of complications from pregnancy3 or childbirth. ---- The Africa director of the United Nations Population Fund, Fama Ba, says while money has been spent on new hospitals and clinics, many developing countries have a hard time keeping staff from leaving for jobs in wealthier countries. "They are facing the outflow of health personnel going to the North," she said. "You can go to some health facilities and you don't find anybody to attend to those people. And this has a consequent impact on the increasing levels of maternal mortality in many areas." Ba says there have been success stories in reducing the numbers of women dying in childbirth in Africa. Senegal, she says, reduced its maternal mortality rate by 20 percent over the last decade by working with community organizations and building new health centers. Ba says spending money on women's health and family planning is sound economic policy. "Half of the population is constituted by women. And it is confirmed by many studies that investing in reproductive health and family planning is absolutely critical to empowering women and to have them contribute their full potential to the development of their countries," said Ba. The U.N.'s Millennium4 Development goals call for more investment in sexual and reproductive health to reduce poverty in half by 20-15. The world body estimates two in three Africans have no access to essential services, such as family planning, maternal health care, and HIV prevention and treatment.

1 nomad   

n.游牧部落的人，流浪者，游牧民

参考例句：

• He was indeed a nomad of no nationality.他的确是个无国籍的游民。
• The nomad life is rough and hazardous.游牧生活艰苦又危险。

2 maternal   

adj.母亲的，母亲般的，母系的，母方的

参考例句：

• He is my maternal uncle.他是我舅舅。
• The sight of the hopeless little boy aroused her maternal instincts.那个绝望的小男孩的模样唤起了她的母性。

3 pregnancy   

n.怀孕，怀孕期

参考例句：

• Early pregnancy is often accompanied by nausea.怀孕早期常有恶心的现象。
• Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage.怀孕期吸烟会增加流产的危险。

4 millennium   

n.一千年，千禧年；太平盛世

参考例句：

• The whole world was counting down to the new millennium.全世界都在倒计时迎接新千年的到来。
• We waited as the clock ticked away the last few seconds of the old millennium.我们静候着时钟滴答走过千年的最后几秒钟。