美国国家公共电台 NPR--Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield says Somalia needs urgent care to avoid another famine

Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield says Somalia needs urgent care to avoid another famine

Transcript¹

Millions of people in Somalia and the greater Horn of Africa are on the verge² of starvation. The country is bracing³ for its second famine since 2011 and many predict it will be worse than the last.

Linda Thomas-Greenfield, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, told NPR hunger, drought and fighting in Somalia are "a perfect storm of food insecurity."

Famine is a recurrence⁴ in East Africa; Somalia declared famine in 2011, killing⁵ a quarter of a million people. Al-Shabab's hostility⁶ to aid efforts was a major factor. A two-year drought has devastated⁷ crops leaving herders without food to feed their animals.

The U.N. now estimates that more than 1.7 million Somalis have been displaced from their homes. Many sought humanitarian⁸ assistance in urban camps while others crossed the border to Kenya or Ethiopia.

Al-Shabaab, an Islamist militant⁹ group, is another reason people believe this famine will be worse.

In southern Somalia, al-Shabaab controls the roads leading into major cities, including Baidoa. These roadblocks allow Al-Shabaab control over the merchants, money and food in the region. The group selects which wholesalers can bring in food from the capital, Mogadishu, and taxes local business owners, which leads to food shortages and higher prices for staple¹⁰ crops. Most Somalis can not afford the Al-Shabaab's demands.

In 1993, Thomas-Greenfield served as the refugee coordinator¹¹ in the Horn of Africa for the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi, Kenya. As she trekked¹² through refugee camps in Mogadishu years ago, she witnessed the effects of recurring¹³ famines and the heavy burden of displacement¹⁴ on Somalis. She returned to East Africa on Sunday to strengthen the United States' alliance with Somalia.

In a conversation on Morning Edition, she told Steve Inskeep the international community has to work with "a sense of urgency" to avoid another famine in Somalia.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

I remember the lack of joy in people's eyes because people were fleeing. Mothers were holding babies who had not had enough food. They were describing incidents of rape¹⁵. Many of them were kicked out by their families. But the most difficult thing I saw was watching a young girl who looked like a baby. I found out later she was two years old. She died in front of my eyes.

Somalia has faced hunger before. Thomas-Greenfield on why this famine might be worse

The issue of hunger has been an issue for some time, but it was certainly made more dire¹⁶ by the war in Ukraine. It was made equally difficult by significant climatic changes. We heard when we were in Kenya that they've had five consecutive¹⁷ failed rainfalls. And what that means is that people cannot grow the food that they need to eat. And the sixth rainfall is scheduled to take place in the March, April timeframe, and the predictions are dire.

So combine that with the war in Ukraine and then conflict this taking place in Somalia and in the region. And you have a perfect storm of food insecurity.

On the effects of war, insurgence¹⁸ and drought on East Africa

Well, you're dealing¹⁹ with conflict so people cannot grow their products when they're being forced from their homes. People are already living subsistence lives. Anything that happens that might impact their ability to survive is almost a death notice.

Ukraine was a net exporter of wheat. They still had wheat in ships and wheat in silos that were not being shipped overseas. That wheat also has affected²⁰ the food insecurity that's taking place in the Horn of Africa.

On the international community

We have to work with much more a sense of urgency to address these food insecurity crises. We have enough food in the world to feed people and we have to find a way. We have to use the tools that we have at hand to ensure that we get food to people where they need it and we can do it. So we just have to work smarter. We have to work more consistently.

I made a call of desperation to the rest of the world to join us in this fight so that we don't ever have to watch a young child die in front of our eyes.

This interview with Linda Thomas-Greenfield was produced by Taylor Haney and edited by Simone Popperl. The digital version was edited by Majd Al-Waheidi.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 verge   

n.边，边缘；v.接近，濒临

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• She was on the verge of bursting into tears.她快要哭出来了。

3 bracing   

adj.令人振奋的

参考例句：

• The country is bracing itself for the threatened enemy invasion. 这个国家正准备奋起抵抗敌人的入侵威胁。
• The atmosphere in the new government was bracing. 新政府的气氛是令人振奋的。

4 recurrence   

n.复发，反复，重现

参考例句：

• More care in the future will prevent recurrence of the mistake.将来的小心可防止错误的重现。
• He was aware of the possibility of a recurrence of his illness.他知道他的病有可能复发。

5 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

6 hostility   

n.敌对，敌意；抵制［pl.］交战，战争

参考例句：

• There is open hostility between the two leaders.两位领导人表现出公开的敌意。
• His hostility to your plan is well known.他对你的计划所持的敌意是众所周知的。

7 devastated   

v.彻底破坏( devastate的过去式和过去分词)；摧毁；毁灭；在感情上（精神上、财务上等）压垮adj.毁坏的；极为震惊的

参考例句：

• The bomb devastated much of the old part of the city. 这颗炸弹炸毁了旧城的一大片地方。
• His family is absolutely devastated. 他的一家感到极为震惊。

8 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

9 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。

10 staple   

n.主要产物，常用品，主要要素，原料，订书钉，钩环；adj.主要的，重要的；vt.分类

参考例句：

• Tea is the staple crop here.本地产品以茶叶为大宗。
• Potatoes are the staple of their diet.土豆是他们的主要食品。

11 coordinator   

n.协调人

参考例句：

• The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, headed by the Emergency Relief Coordinator, coordinates all UN emergency relief. 联合国人道主义事务协调厅在紧急救济协调员领导下，负责协调联合国的所有紧急救济工作。
• How am I supposed to find the client-relations coordinator? 我怎么才能找到客户关系协调员的办公室？

12 trekked   

v.艰苦跋涉，徒步旅行( trek的过去式和过去分词 )；（尤指在山中）远足，徒步旅行，游山玩水

参考例句：

• They trekked for three days along the banks of the Zambezi. 他们沿着赞比西河河岸跋涉了三天。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Six-man teams trekked through the woods, respectively for 72 to 96 hours. 6人一组的小分队，经过长途跋涉，穿过了森林，分别用72小时到96小时不等。 来自互联网

13 recurring   

adj.往复的，再次发生的

参考例句：

• This kind of problem is recurring often. 这类问题经常发生。
• For our own country, it has been a time for recurring trial. 就我们国家而言，它经过了一个反复考验的时期。

14 displacement   

n.移置，取代，位移，排水量

参考例句：

• They said that time is the feeling of spatial displacement.他们说时间是空间位移的感觉。
• The displacement of all my energy into caring for the baby.我所有精力都放在了照顾宝宝上。

15 rape   

n.抢夺，掠夺，强奸；vt.掠夺，抢夺，强奸

参考例句：

• The rape of the countryside had a profound ravage on them.对乡村的掠夺给他们造成严重创伤。
• He was brought to court and charged with rape.他被带到法庭并被指控犯有强奸罪。

16 dire   

adj.可怕的，悲惨的，阴惨的，极端的

参考例句：

• There were dire warnings about the dangers of watching too much TV.曾经有人就看电视太多的危害性提出严重警告。
• We were indeed in dire straits.But we pulled through.那时我们的困难真是大极了，但是我们渡过了困难。

17 consecutive   

adj.连续的，联贯的，始终一贯的

参考例句：

• It has rained for four consecutive days.已连续下了四天雨。
• The policy of our Party is consecutive.我党的政策始终如一。

18 insurgence   

n.起义；造反；暴动；叛乱

参考例句：

• US troops moved into the Afghan mountains in an offensive to stop Taliban insurgence. 美军日前进军阿富汗山区阻止塔利班组织的一次暴动。 来自互联网

19 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。

20 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。