(单词翻译:单击)
听力文本
From VOA Learning English, this is the Agriculture Report.
The United Nations reports that more than 3.3 million people are now experiencing food insecurity in Sudan. That number is expected to rise in the next several month to 4 million. About 11 percent of the country's estimated 34 million people would be affected by the rise.
The U.N. Food and Agriculture Agency(FAO) says fighting, displacement and poor harvests prevent many people from receiving food. Rosanne Marchesich represents the FAO in Sudan. She is shocked by the size of crisis.
"The numbers are quite astonishing,"said Marchesich.
Ms Marchesich says Sudan is facing – what she calls – an early lean season.
"When the harvest is finished and the amount of locally available food is diminished. That's what the lean season is,"said Marchesich.
She says food support is needed in millions of Sudanese homes for several reasons. She notes the conflicts in Blue Nile and Southern Kordofan States, and especially in Darfur. Huge numbers of people have fled the violence. About 380,000 people were displaced in 2013.
Ms Marchesich says, already this year, 280,000 people have fled their home in Darfur. Also, permanent and traveling planters and animal farmers sometimes fight for resources. And weather can be a major barrier to food security. Long extremely dry periods are followed by floods.
"So, it's really a human disaster and natural disaster–a combination of the two," said Marchesich.
Low food supplies in parts of Sudan have caused a sudden rise in food prices. Meat price, for example, are up 84 percent. Vegetable prices have risen by 40 percent. In addition, the cost of transporting food has increased by 70 percent. Conflict in neighboring South Sudan makes the food situation more difficult. Refugees continue to cross the border and enter camps in Sudan.
The FAO official says it is very important to continue to provide these people with seeds and farm supplies. Help is also needed for communities around the camps, and for the refugees who return home.
"And they're returning to nothing. So these people need to have seeds and tools so that they can plant and have a harvest," said Marchesich.
Ms Marchesich says thousands of metric tons of seed are required and farmers need almost one-million agricultural tools.
And that's the Agriculture Report from VOA Learning English, I'm Caty Weaver.
文本来自51voa，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.displacement n. 取代，位移；[船] 排水量
They said that time is the feeling of spatial displacement.
他们说时间是空间位移的感觉。
2.lean vi. 倾斜；倚靠；倾向；依赖 adj. 瘦的；贫乏的，歉收的 vt. 使倾斜 n. 瘦肉；倾斜；倾斜度
He's a tall, lean chap.
他是瘦长个儿。
3.metric ton n. 公吨
The Wall Street Journal uses 220,000 metric tons of newsprint each year.
《华尔街日报》每年用去22万公吨新闻纸。
内容解析
1.The U.N. Food and Agriculture Agency(FAO) says fighting, displacement and poor harvests prevent many people from receiving food.
prevent from 阻止，制止；妨碍
My only idea was to prevent the woman from speaking.
我唯一的想法就是不让那女人讲话。
You have to keep watching to prevent the milk from boiling over.
你要看住，不要让牛奶溢出来。
参考译文
美国之音慢速英语农业报道。
联合国报告称苏丹现在有330多万人面临粮食缺乏问题，这一数字可能在未来数月上升到400万。在该国大约3400万人口中，约有11%的人将要受此影响。
联合国粮农组织(FAO)称战争、流离失所和农业欠收使得很多人无法获得食物。Rosanne Marchesich是粮农组织驻苏丹代表，她对这场危机规模之大感到震惊。
“这个数字相当惊人。”
Marchesich说苏丹面临所谓的青黄不接。
“当收成被吃光，而当地可获得的食物在减少，这就是所谓的青黄不接。”
她说苏丹数百万家庭需要粮食援助有几个方面的原因，她提及青尼罗河和南科尔多凡州的冲突，尤其是达尔富尔的冲突都是原因。2012年约有38万人背井离乡。
Marchesich说今年已经有28万达尔富尔人离开家园，同时，常住和迁徙种植者和牧民有时为争夺资源而战斗。天气也是粮食安全的一大障碍，长期极端干旱后便随的就是洪灾。
“所以，这确实是场人为灾难和自然灾难，是两者的结合。”
苏丹部分地区粮食供应不足引发食物价格飙升，比如，肉价上涨了84%，蔬菜价格上涨了40%。另外，运输食物的成本也上涨了70%。邻国南苏丹的冲突使得食物供应更加困难，难民们仍在越过边境，进入苏丹的难民营。
粮农组织官员称很难继续给这些人提供种子和农场物资，难民营周边社区需要帮助，回到家的难民也需要帮助。
“他们回来后发现一无所有，所以这些人需要种子和农具来播种，这样才有收获。”
Marchesich说目前需要数千公吨种子，农民们还需要近100万件农具。
这就是美国之音慢速英语农业报道，我是凯蒂·韦弗。
