VOA英语2010年-Climate Change: More Funding Needed for Agri

A U-N agency says there are major funding gaps in efforts to help the agricultural sector¹ adapt to climate change. The Food and Agriculture Organization, the FAO, says this could affect food security. The warning comes as the U-N Climate Change Conference continues in Cancun, Mexico.

The World Bank estimates it will cost about $2.5 billion a year – for the next 40 years – to help agriculture in developing countries adapt to climate change. Other estimates say costs could run as high at $14 billion a year.

However, the FAO says, "Available financing mechanisms² are substantially insufficient³ to meet the climate change and food security challenges faced by the agricultural sector." This, despite the fact that the FAO says there are many examples of how agriculture can become more resilient.

FAO Senior Environmental Economist⁴ Leslie Lipper says, "It's not just setting up the mechanisms; it's actually getting a commitment of the resources. One of the points in the FAO document is that there's not enough investment resources being committed. Even in the context of climate change adaptation (for) agriculture, there's not sufficient resources to cover what the costs are."

What's more, she says, "And then it is complicated sometimes to set up the mechanisms to actually get the financing where you need it to go."

Creative financing

Lipper says one possible solution is to link funding for climate change adaptation to other programs.

"We also look at the potential to link with existing financing mechanisms for agricultural development and overseas development assistance. And work through those in order to reduce the costs of getting this financing in," she says.

The global economic crisis is one reason for the lack of financing.

"Well it doesn't help," says Lipper, "but there's been a long term decrease in investment in agriculture. So, no, it's not just that. It's a lack of recognition of the importance of the sector and a lack of political commitment to really meet the commitments to decrease food insecurity and also now to meet climate change mitigation adaptation."

The U.N. estimates the agricultural sector will need to feed 9 billion people by 2050.

Lipper says, "First of all, we know that developing country agriculture needs to grow in order to provide the basis for achieving food security – provide food and incomes for people, the rural poor. We also know they'll be facing adaptation. We need funds in there to get more resilient type of production systems. They're facing more variability of climate shocks and there's a need to make the production systems more stable."

But the FAO economist says the news isn't all bad.

"A lot of the same changes that you want for increasing people's incomes, food production and resilience, also give you a mitigation benefit, which means either reducing emissions⁵ or increasing carbon sequestration either in soils or in plants. Basically pulling the emissions back and putting it back in the ground. And that has an additional benefit," she says.

She adds, "We think that by combining mitigation adaptation financing for these kinds of things is one potential way of dealing⁶ with this issue of the investment gap."

The FAO also says developing countries should have national policies that encourage private investment in mitigation and adaptation.

1 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。

2 mechanisms   

n.机械( mechanism的名词复数 )；机械装置；[生物学] 机制；机械作用

参考例句：

• The research will provide direct insight into molecular mechanisms. 这项研究将使人能够直接地了解分子的机理。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He explained how the two mechanisms worked. 他解释这两台机械装置是如何工作的。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 insufficient   

adj.(for，of)不足的，不够的

参考例句：

• There was insufficient evidence to convict him.没有足够证据给他定罪。
• In their day scientific knowledge was insufficient to settle the matter.在他们的时代，科学知识还不能足以解决这些问题。

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 emissions   

排放物( emission的名词复数 )； 散发物（尤指气体）

参考例句：

• Most scientists accept that climate change is linked to carbon emissions. 大多数科学家都相信气候变化与排放的含碳气体有关。
• Dangerous emissions radiate from plutonium. 危险的辐射物从钚放散出来。

6 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。