(单词翻译:单击)
听力文本
From VOA Learning English, this is the Agriculture Report.
Researchers are developing ways to increase rice production in Africa as part of efforts to fight hunger. Their work was discussed at the African Rice Congress in Cameroon last month. Experts say 60 percent of the thirty million tons of rice used in Africa is imported from Asia.
They estimate that Africa spends $5 billion on rice imports every year. And yet the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) says they are still rice shortages on the continent.
Rice production was reduced in some countries after the economic crisis of the 1990s. Samantana Mark is director general of Cameroon's rice production company, SEMRY.
He says that with beginning of the crisis, African countries stopped making investments in rice production and in the marketing of rice. Issues like climate change and extreme temperatures have slowed rice production, especially in areas south of the Saharan desert.
Plant disease is also a problem. But some African researchers say they have developed rice plants that can grow in areas with little rain fall.
Nigerian-born Adekoya Madinat works with the Shanghai Academy of Agricultural Sciences.
"With this research we try to see how much water exactly is needed for rice production and try to see which genes are actually recruited during the event of droughts. So these genes can be used to develop drought-resistant varieties that can be planted with minimal water and we still have very good yields and food security," said Madinat.
Delegates to the congress called for great mechanization of African agriculture, and they agree that investing in rice production requires a lot of money.
Robert Guei works for the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization. He says that investments in rice production should be a top issue for African governments seeking to end hunger and poverty.
"African governments have to support small companies. These people have to be encouraged so governments have to come out with good policies whereby these companies are subsidized. Help them to have credits to banks and loans so that they can produce these varieties of rice and distribute and this is what FAO is doing now, talking to governments to set up policies," said Guei.
Experts say that currently, African countries produce about 12 million tons of rice per year.
And that's the Agriculture Report from VOA Learning English. Transcripts, MP3s and podcasts of our reports are at learningenglish.voanews.com. We are also on Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, Twitter and iTunes at VOA Learning English.
译文属可可原创，仅供学习交流使用，未经许可请勿转载
词汇解释
1.shortage n. 缺乏，缺少；不足
The shortage of oil will probably drive prices up.
石油短缺很有可能迫使价格上涨。
2.drought-resistant adj.抗旱的
Tommy Carter started working resistance soil - beans drought - resistant soybeans in 1981.
托米卡特从1981年开始研究抗旱大豆。
3.mechanization n. 机械化；机动化
The fundamental way out for agriculture lies in mechanization.
农业的根本出路在于机械化。
4.varieties n. 品种；种类（variety的复数）；变种
In ten days we collected over 100 varieties.
十天之中， 我们采集到一百多个品种。
内容解析
1.Delegates to the congress called for great mechanization of African agriculture
call for 要求；需要；提倡；邀请；为…叫喊
To be a nurse calls for endurance and patience.
作一名护士需要有毅力和耐心。
They called for assurances that the government is committed to its education policy.
他们要求保证政府切实执行其教育方针。
2.These people have to be encouraged so governments have to come out with good policies whereby these companies are subsidized.
come out with 说出；发表；出版；供应，把…投入市场
Someone came out with a most useful suggestion.
有人提出了一个非常有益的建议。
The company came out with three new models.
该公司生产出三种新型产品。
We're going to come out with a new dictionary next month.
下个月我们将出版一部新词典。
参考译文
这里是美国之音慢速英语农业报道。
研究者正寻找办法帮助非洲增加稻米产量，从而作为消除饥饿的一个手段。上月在喀麦隆举行的非洲稻米大会上讨论了这个问题，专家称非洲食用的3000万吨大米中有60%的是从亚洲进口的。
他们估计非洲每年花50亿美元来进口稻米，然而联合国粮农组织(FAO)称非洲仍然存在大米缺口。
自20世纪90年代经济危机以来，很多国家的大米产量减少了。Samantana Mark就职于喀麦隆大米生产公司SEMRY。
他说在危机开始之初，非洲国家停止投资于大米生产和营销。诸如气候变化和极端温度使得大米生产放缓，尤其在撒哈拉沙漠南部地区。
作物疾病也是个问题，但有的非洲研究者说他们开发出能在少雨地区生长的大米品种。
尼日利亚出生的Adekoya Madinat就职于上海农业科学院。
“我们在研究中看究竟大米生产需要多少水，看哪些基因能在干旱时发挥作用，这样这些基因就可以用来开发抗旱品种，用于种植在缺水地区，这样就能有好的收成，确保粮食安全。”
参加大会的代表们呼吁实施非洲农业的大力机械化，他们认为投资大米生产需要很多资金。
Robert Guei就职于联合国粮农组织，他说投资于大米生产应该成为非洲各国解决饥饿和贫困问题的头等大事。
“非洲国家必须支持小公司，必须鼓励这些人，所以政府必须提供好的政策，这样这些公司就能得到资助。帮助他们获得银行信贷，这样他们就能生产出这些大米品种，粮农组织正在与各政府商谈制定这些政策。”
专家说目前非洲国家每年生产大约1200吨大米。
这里是美国之音慢速英语农业报道，登陆learningenglish.voanews.com获得报道的文本、音频和播客。
