VOA标准英语2008年-Experts Predict Risky Climate Ahead for Continu

By Terry FitzPatrick
Cape¹ Town
04 June 2008

"Urgent action" by African governments will be needed to sustain the continent's economic growth. That assessment² comes from experts at the World Economic Forum³, as more than 800 business leaders gather to discuss Africa's future. For VOA, Terry FitzPatrick reports from Cape Town, South Africa.
　

Delegates attend World Economic Forum in Cape Town

To set the tone for this week's African business debate, the World Economic Forum has published a good-news, bad-news analysis.

Economist⁴ Irene Casanova says there is plenty of good news.

"I think we need to be very positive. Since 2000, 45 of 48 countries in sub-Saharan Africa have achieved real growth averaging five percent," she said.

Still, Casanova's team of analysts⁵ says Africa is a continent "at risk." Their report says growth has been uneven⁶, fueled largely by exports of oil, minerals and food instead of broad-based industrial manufacturing. As well, the report says African politicians and their business associates have become extremely wealthy, while more than 500 million Africans still subsist⁷ on less than $2 a day.

The experts say this leaves Africa especially vulnerable to shocks caused by rising food prices, a changing climate, global economic downturns and periods of political instability. Casanova says these risks must all be addressed at once.

"All the risks that we highlight, and all the risks and opportunities actually, they are immensely interconnected," she said. "Climate change, food crisis, conflict, social unrest - it's extraordinary now. And it makes the situation quite complex."

Casanova's team recommends greater emphasis on diversifying⁸ Africa's economy and improving the productivity of farms. The business leaders gathered here, including several presidents and heads of government, will spend three days discussing just how that can be done.

1 cape   

n.海角，岬；披肩，短披风

参考例句：

• I long for a trip to the Cape of Good Hope.我渴望到好望角去旅行。
• She was wearing a cape over her dress.她在外套上披着一件披肩。

2 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

3 forum   

n.论坛，讨论会

参考例句：

• They're holding a forum on new ways of teaching history.他们正在举行历史教学讨论会。
• The organisation would provide a forum where problems could be discussed.这个组织将提供一个可以讨论问题的平台。

4 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

5 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

6 uneven   

adj.不平坦的，不规则的，不均匀的

参考例句：

• The sidewalk is very uneven—be careful where you walk.这人行道凹凸不平—走路时请小心。
• The country was noted for its uneven distribution of land resources.这个国家以土地资源分布不均匀出名。

7 subsist   

vi.生存，存在，供养

参考例句：

• We are unable to subsist without air and water.没有空气和水我们就活不下去。
• He could subsist on bark and grass roots in the isolated island.在荒岛上他只能靠树皮和草根维持生命。

8 diversifying   

v.使多样化，多样化( diversify的现在分词 )；进入新的商业领域

参考例句：

• Some publishers are now diversifying into software. 有些出版社目前正兼营软件。 来自辞典例句
• Silverlit is diversifying into new markets, such as Russia and Eastern Europe. Silverlit正在使他们的市场变得多样化，开发新的市场如俄罗斯和东欧国家。 来自互联网