VOA常速英语2015--非洲粮食安全现状的地区差异

非洲粮食安全现状的地区差异

A new report on Africa’s food security showed regional differences in progress. Western Africa led the continent in reducing the number of undernourished people since the early 1990s. The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization has released the first edition of the Regional Overview¹ of Food Insecurity in Africa.

非洲粮食安全最新报告表明不同地区的进步程度有差异，自20世纪90年代初，在减少营养不良人口数量方面，西非在非洲大陆是表现最好的。联合国粮农组织发布了《2015年非洲粮食不安全地区概览》第一版。

Africa, as other parts of the world, has had two main targets for food security: the Millennium² Development Goal of reducing by half the proportion of undernourished people – and the tougher 1996 World Food Summit target of reducing by half the actual number of hungry people.

像世界其他地区一样，非洲在粮食安全方面有两个主要目标：将营养不良人口比例减半的千年发展目标和更严格的世界粮食峰会目标，即将饥饿人口数量减半。

The findings may seem contradictory³ at first. For example, the prevalence of undernourished people in sub-Saharan Africa declined from 33 percent in the early 1990s to 23 percent today. So, in this case, prevalence is the percentage of Africa’s growing population affected⁴ by undernourishment. That’s gone down and that’s good.

这些新发表一看可能有冲突，比如，从20世纪90年代初到现在，撒哈拉南部非洲的营养不良人口的盛行率从33%下降到23%。在这里，盛行率就是非洲日益增多的营养不良人口的比例，这个比例已经降低，这一点很好。

However, the FAO report also showed that despite a smaller percentage of the overall population being undernourished, the actual number of undernourished people has increased. It’s risen from nearly 176 million in the early 1990s to 220 million today.

然而，粮农组织的报告还指出，尽管整体人口的营养不良比例在变小，但实际上的营养不良人口数量事实上增加了，从20世纪90年初到现在，这个数字从近1.76亿增加到2.2亿。

FAO Assistant Director General Bukar Tijani looks at the overall findings and sees bright prospects⁵ for Africa’s food security.

粮农组织助理总干事蒂贾尼看了整体报告结果，认为非洲的粮食安全有着光明的前景。

“There is a lot of improvement. Heads of state of all the African countries have made a very concrete resolve in the declaration in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea,” he said.

“已经有了很大改善，非洲各国的国家元首们已经在赤道几内亚的马拉博表示了坚定的决心。”

The long-titled Malabo Declaration on Accelerated Agricultural Growth and Transformation⁶ for Shared Prosperity and Improved Livelihoods⁷ was approved a year ago.

加快农业发展和转型以促进共同繁荣和改善生计的马拉博宣言一年前得到批准通过。

Tijani said, “Before that time there had been high level meetings and there were agreements to get a roadmap going back to the Maputo Declaration of 2003. Governments will make sure they focus more, in terms of policy, in terms of more investments.”

蒂贾尼说，“在此之前已经举行过一些高层会议，会上决定采取路线图以回到2003年的马拉博宣言上来，各国政府将确保更加注重政策方面，进行更多的投资。”

The 2003 Maputo Declaration called on African governments to invest 10 percent of their national budgets in agriculture.

2003年的马拉博宣言呼吁非洲各国政府将国家预算的10%用于农业。

The FAO’s Regional Overview of Food Insecurity said Angola, Djibouti, Cameroon, Gabon, Ghana, Mali and Sao Tome and Principe “met the relevant Millennium Development Goal of halving⁸ the proportion of the population suffering from undernourishment and the World Food Summit target of halving the absolute numbers of the hungry.”

粮农组织的《粮食不安全地区概览》称安哥拉、喀麦隆、加蓬、加纳、马里和圣多美与普林希比共和国“实现了将营养不良人口减半的相关千年发展目标和将饥饿绝对人口数量减半的世界粮食峰会目标。”

It said that West Africa made “particular strides.” Tijani said the region “reduced the ranks of the hungry by almost 11 million.” He described that as “significant progress despite rapid population growth and recurrent droughts in Sahel countries.”

该概览称西非进步尤其巨大，蒂贾尼说该地区“将饥饿人口减少了近1100万”。他说尽管萨赫勒地带国家人口发展迅速且经常出现旱灾，这已经是巨大的进步。

The FAO report said Eastern and Southern Africa “made some progress,” while Middle Africa is “lagging behind” regarding both the MDG and World Food Summit targets.

粮农组织的报告称东非和南非“也取得一些进步”，而中非在千年发展目标和世界粮食峰会目标方面“比较落后”。

Tijani highlighted some of the current obstacles to African food security.

蒂贾尼指出非洲粮食安全目前面临的一些障碍。

“The effect of climate change, civil strife⁹, epidemics¹⁰ like Ebola and others – and also some insecurities --these are part of those phenomena¹¹ and things that are making food security very difficult.”

“气候变化、国内冲突、埃博拉等流行病，以及一切不安定因素，所有这些都是给粮食安全带来困难的现象和问题。”

For example, the report said a 20 percent rise in hungry people in East Africa is blamed on “unfavorable climate and drought conditions,” while the doubling of hungry people in Central Africa is “largely due to civil strife.”

比如，该报告称东非饥饿人口增加20%是由于“糟糕的气候和干旱”，中非饥饿人口翻倍“在很大程度上归咎于国内冲突”。

The findings also showed Africa’s poverty rate declined by 23 percent between 1993 and 2011.

该发现还表明，从1993年到2011年间，非洲的贫困率下降了23%。

As for children, the number of underweight children has declined in sub-Saharan Africa over the last 20 years, but there’s a growing number of children under five who are overweight.

对儿童来说，过去20年间，撒哈拉南部非洲的体重不足儿童数量已经减少，但有越来越多的五岁以下儿童超重。

 

Health officials said the dual¹² problems of undernourishment and obesity¹³ both can be blamed on poor nutrition, such as high calorie but low nutrient¹⁴ foods. Too much sugar and fat have been blamed in many cases.

卫生官员称营养不良和超重这个双重问题都可归咎于营养糟糕，比如高热量但低营养的食物，在很多情况下都要归因于太多的糖和脂肪。

1 overview   

n.概观，概述

参考例句：

• The opening chapter gives a brief historical overview of transport.第一章是运输史的简要回顾。
• The seminar aims to provide an overview on new media publishing.研讨会旨在综览新兴的媒体出版。

2 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。

3 contradictory   

adj.反驳的，反对的，抗辩的；n.正反对，矛盾对立

参考例句：

• The argument is internally contradictory.论据本身自相矛盾。
• What he said was self-contradictory.他讲话前后不符。

4 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

5 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。

6 transformation   

n.变化；改造；转变

参考例句：

• Going to college brought about a dramatic transformation in her outlook.上大学使她的观念发生了巨大的变化。
• He was struggling to make the transformation from single man to responsible husband.他正在努力使自己由单身汉变为可靠的丈夫。

7 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。

8 halving   

n.对分，二等分，减半[航空、航海]等分v.把…分成两半( halve的现在分词 )；把…减半；对分；平摊

参考例句：

• You searched those halving your salary cut your enthusiasm. 你呈现，薪水减半降低了你的任务热情。 来自互联网
• Halving the repeater spacing made it possible to quadruple the bandwidth. 把增音机间隔缩小一半，就能使带宽增加三倍。 来自互联网

9 strife   

n.争吵，冲突，倾轧，竞争

参考例句：

• We do not intend to be drawn into the internal strife.我们不想卷入内乱之中。
• Money is a major cause of strife in many marriages.金钱是造成很多婚姻不和的一个主要原因。

10 epidemics   

n．流行病

参考例句：

• Reliance upon natural epidemics may be both time-consuming and misleading. 依靠天然的流行既浪费时间，又会引入歧途。
• The antibiotic epidemics usually start stop when the summer rainy season begins. 传染病通常会在夏天的雨季停止传播。

11 phenomena   

n.现象

参考例句：

• Ade couldn't relate the phenomena with any theory he knew.艾德无法用他所知道的任何理论来解释这种现象。
• The object of these experiments was to find the connection,if any,between the two phenomena.这些实验的目的就是探索这两种现象之间的联系，如果存在着任何联系的话。

12 dual   

adj.双的；二重的，二元的

参考例句：

• The people's Republic of China does not recognize dual nationality for any Chinese national.中华人民共和国不承认中国公民具有双重国籍。
• He has dual role as composer and conductor.他兼作曲家及指挥的双重身分。

13 obesity   

n.肥胖，肥大

参考例句：

• One effect of overeating may be obesity.吃得过多能导致肥胖。
• Sugar and fat can more easily lead to obesity than some other foods.糖和脂肪比其他食物更容易导致肥胖。

14 nutrient   

adj.营养的，滋养的；n.营养物，营养品

参考例句：

• Magnesium is the nutrient element in plant growth.镁是植物生长的营养要素。
• The roots transmit moisture and nutrient to the trunk and branches.根将水分和养料输送到干和枝。