经济学人:哥伦比亚基础设施 (1)

 　　It costs more to send a 40-foot container by road from Bogotá, Colombia's capital, 通过陆路将一个40英尺的集装箱从哥伦比亚首都波哥大

　　to Buenaventura on its Pacific coast than to ship it on from Buenaventura to Shanghai. 运往太平海岸的布埃纳文图拉，其成本比通过海运从布埃纳文图拉运往上海的成本还高。

　　According to the World Economic Forum¹, Colombia's roads are among the worst in Latin America. 世界经济论坛表示，哥伦比亚公路是拉美地区最糟糕的公路之一。

　　For more than 20 years governments have tried to improve matters, with little success. Now Colombia is trying again. 20多年来，政府尝试过改善这些问题，但收效甚微。现在哥伦比亚又开始了新的尝试。

　　Central to the latest attempt, called the Fourth Generation (4G) road-development programme, 最近的一个项目被称为第四代(4G)公路发展项目，

　　is the National Development Finance corporation (FDN), which was launched in 2013. 该项目以国家发展金融公司（FDN）为中心，FDN于2013年成立。

　　Unlike most development banks elsewhere, it funds at most 25% of any project. 和其他大部分发展银行不同的是，FDN对任何项目的资助最多为该项目的25%。

　　It must seek out private investors², at home and abroad, and package projects to offer acceptable risks and returns. FDN必须在国内外寻找私人投资者，并将项目打包以提供可接受的风险和回报。

　　Colombia's needs are so great, says Clemente del Valle, the FDN's president, that it "can't just sit around and wait till those markets are developed." 哥伦比亚的需求非常大，FDN主席Clemente del Valle表示。哥伦比亚“不能无所事事坐等那些市场自己发展起来。”

　　That forces it to support only viable³ proposals, says Ramiro Lopez-Ghio of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). 那种压力迫使它只能支持可行建议，美洲开发银行（IDB）的Ramiro Lopez-Ghio说道。

　　The result is that the FDN's involvement is a signal of quality. It gives investors comfort in other ways, too. 结果是FDN的参与成了一种项目质量的信号，也在其他方面给了投资者一种安慰。

　　The bank offers a peso credit line that helps foreign investors offset⁴ their exchange-rate risk. 银行提供一种比索信用额度帮助外国投资者抵消他们的汇率风险。

　　And it lobbied congress to make it easier for Colombian pension funds to invest in the infrastructure⁵-debt funds it helped set up. 银行对国会进行游说使利用哥伦比亚养老基金投资基础设施债务基金变得更加容易，后者也由该银行帮助成立。

　　Another aim of the FDN is to help fight graft⁶. This is common in government infrastructure projects the world over. FDN的另一个目标是帮助反腐败。贪腐在全世界的政府基础设施项目中非常普遍。

　　Colombia has been no exception. In one recent scandal, dubbed⁷ the Merry-Go-Round, construction firms overpriced work and bribed⁸ politicians, 哥伦比亚也不例外。在最近的一起丑闻中，建筑公司抬高工程价格并向政客行贿，

　　including Bogotá's former mayor, who was sentenced to 24 years in jail. (He is appealing.) 其中包括波哥大的前市长，他被判刑24年。（目前他在上诉。）

　　And it is one of at least ten Latin American countries where Odebrecht, a Brazilian construction giant, bribed politicians to win contracts. 在至少10个拉美国家中，就有一个国家的政客收受巴西建筑巨头Odebrecht的中标行贿。

　　Respected foreign institutions have been brought in to try to change all that. 为了改变这种现象，备受尊重的国外机构被引进。

　　Though Colombia's government is the FDN's majority shareholder⁹, 虽然哥伦比亚政府是FDN的大股东，

　　the International Finance Corporation and the Andean Development Corporation each hold around 8-9%. 但国际金融公司和安第斯开发公司各持约8-9%的股份。

　　The Sumitomo Mitsui Banking¹⁰ Corporation, a private Japanese bank, holds a similar share. 日本私有银行三井住友银行也持相当股份。

1 forum   

n.论坛，讨论会

参考例句：

• They're holding a forum on new ways of teaching history.他们正在举行历史教学讨论会。
• The organisation would provide a forum where problems could be discussed.这个组织将提供一个可以讨论问题的平台。

2 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

3 viable   

adj.可行的，切实可行的，能活下去的

参考例句：

• The scheme is economically viable.这个计划从经济效益来看是可行的。
• The economy of the country is not viable.这个国家经济是难以维持的。

4 offset   

n.分支，补偿；v.抵消，补偿

参考例句：

• Their wage increases would be offset by higher prices.他们增加的工资会被物价上涨所抵消。
• He put up his prices to offset the increased cost of materials.他提高了售价以补偿材料成本的增加。

5 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

6 graft   

n.移植，嫁接，艰苦工作，贪污；v.移植，嫁接

参考例句：

• I am having a skin graft on my arm soon.我马上就要接受手臂的皮肤移植手术。
• The minister became rich through graft.这位部长透过贪污受贿致富。

7 dubbed   

v.给…起绰号( dub的过去式和过去分词 )；把…称为；配音；复制

参考例句：

• Mathematics was once dubbed the handmaiden of the sciences. 数学曾一度被视为各门科学的基础。
• Is the movie dubbed or does it have subtitles? 这部电影是配音的还是打字幕的？ 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 bribed   

v.贿赂( bribe的过去式和过去分词 )；向（某人）行贿，贿赂

参考例句：

• They bribed him with costly presents. 他们用贵重的礼物贿赂他。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• He bribed himself onto the committee. 他暗通关节，钻营投机挤进了委员会。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

9 shareholder   

n.股东，股票持有人

参考例句：

• The account department have prepare a financial statement for the shareholder.财务部为股东准备了一份财务报表。
• A shareholder may transfer his shares in accordance with the law.股东持有的股份可以依法转让。

10 banking   

n.银行业，银行学，金融业

参考例句：

• John is launching his son on a career in banking.约翰打算让儿子在银行界谋一个新职位。
• He possesses an extensive knowledge of banking.他具有广博的银行业务知识。