VOA慢速英语2021 新冠肺炎疫苗何时能供应全球？（在线收听）

Experts say it could be 2023 or later before COVID-19 vaccines are widely available in some countries.

专家表示，可能要到2023年甚至更晚，新冠肺炎疫苗才能在某些国家得到广泛提供。

The United States, Israel and Britain are among the countries where more than half of the population has gotten at least one injection, or shot. But, some countries have fewer than one percent of their populations vaccinated. They include South Africa, Pakistan and Venezuela. About 10 countries — mostly in Africa — reportedly have no vaccines at all.

美国、以色列以及英国位居有半数以上人口至少接种过一剂疫苗的国家行列。但是，有些国家的疫苗接种人数不到其总人口的1%。这些国家包括南非、巴基斯坦和委内瑞拉。据报道，大约有10个国家根本没有疫苗，它们主要位于非洲。

There are many reasons for the difference. Economic ones play an important part. But, some people say, so do intellectual property laws that cover scientific discoveries. These laws protect people's creative or scientific work from being reproduced without their permission.

造成这种差异的原因很多。经济因素起到了重要作用。但是有人表示，涵盖科学发现的知识产权法也发挥了重要作用。这些法律保护人们的创意或是科学成果未经其允许不被复制。

The administration of U.S. President Joe Biden has supported waiving intellectual property protections for the vaccines. But it is not clear if there will be agreement on the issue. It is also unclear if such an agreement would speed production.

拜登领导的美国政府支持放弃疫苗的知识产权保护。但是目前尚不清楚是否会就此达成协议。也不清楚这样的协议是否会加快疫苗生产速度。

COVAX, a United Nations-supported project, aims to ensure that poor countries around the world are able to get vaccines. But COVAX has run behind schedule. The reason for the delay is partly because India, a vaccine manufacturer, has banned vaccine exports as it faces increased coronavirus infections. Some countries are also stockpiling vaccines. Stockpiling means getting and keeping a large supply of something for future use.

联合国支持的新冠肺炎疫苗实施计划旨在确保世界上的贫困国家能够获得疫苗。但是该计划的实施落后于预定规划。延误原因是疫苗生产国印度因面临新冠病毒感染激增而禁止了疫苗出口。一些国家也在储备疫苗。储备是指获取并大量储存某种物资以备未来使用。

In April, researchers at Duke University said that, even with help from COVAX, many countries would not be able to reach a 60 percent vaccination level until 2023 or later.

今年4月份，杜克大学的研究人员表示，即使在新冠肺炎疫苗实施计划的帮助下，许多国家也要到2023年甚至更晚才能达到60%的疫苗接种水平。

Matthew Kavanagh is a global health policy expert at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. Kavanagh suggested that preordering partly explains why rich countries have more vaccines.

马修·卡瓦纳是华盛顿特区乔治敦大学的全球卫生专家。卡瓦纳指出，预定可以部分解释为什么发达国家有更多疫苗。

"The U.S., European and other wealthy nations long ago preordered nearly all the doses available and now other countries, even with the money to buy, are at the back of line waiting," Kavanagh said.

卡瓦纳表示：“美国、欧洲等发达国家很早之前就预定了几乎所有可用的疫苗，现在即使有资金，其它国家也排到了队尾。”

China and Russia are among the countries that have committed to giving vaccines to other nations. Others, including the United States and Britain, have not yet opened their stockpiles, although they have committed to doing so. However, some experts expect low vaccine supplies to continue for years to come. "There is simply not enough vaccine to go around," Kavanagh said.

中国和俄罗斯也向其它国家提供疫苗。英美等国尚未开放库存，尽管他们承诺如此。然而，一些专家预测，疫苗供应不足的情况未来几年将会持续下去。卡瓦纳表示：“根本没有足够疫苗可以供应。”