VOA慢速英语2020 国际投资者担忧埃塞俄比亚局势

Ethiopia has invested billions of dollars to build new dams, railways, roads and industrial centers for more than 10 years. The goal has been to change the mainly agricultural nation into a manufacturing power.

埃塞俄比亚十多年来已经投资了数十亿美元用于建造新的大坝、铁路、公路和工业中心。目标是将这个以农业为主的国家转变为制造业强国。

In 2017, the African nation had the world's fastest-growing economy. A year later, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed took office, promising¹ to loosen the state's control on the economy.

2017年，这个非洲国家的经济增长速度位居全球最高。一年之后，该国总理阿比·艾哈迈德走马上任，他承诺要放松国家对经济的控制。

But for the past two years, Ethiopia has faced several problems. These include ethnic² clashes, floods, swarms³ of insects and coronavirus restrictions⁴. Recent fighting, which started in early November, has led many international investors⁵ to become even more concerned about the country.

但是在过去两年里，埃塞俄比亚遇到了一些问题。其中包括种族冲突、洪水、虫灾以及新冠病毒限制。11月初爆发的最新战争使得许多国际投资者对该国更加忧心忡忡。

Ethiopia's rise

埃塞俄比亚的崛起

When Bangladeshi textile company DBL came to Ethiopia two years ago, the African nation was the clothing industry's bright new area. It had a lot of workers and a government that wanted to bring in companies with tax breaks and cheap loans.

当孟加拉国DBL纺织公司两年前来到埃塞俄比亚时，这个非洲国家是服装业充满前景的新区域。该国劳动力众多，并且政府希望以税收减免和廉价贷款引进企业。

Last month, as fighting went on in the northern Tigray region, DBL's compound was hit by an explosion that broke the factory's windows. "All we could do was to pray out loud," said Adbul Waseq, an official at the company, which makes clothes mainly for Swedish clothing company H&M.

上个月随着该国北部蒂格雷地区战斗的继续进行，DBL公司的厂房遭遇爆炸，工厂窗户被炸毁。该公司主要为瑞典H&M服装公司代工服装，公司领导阿德布·瓦塞克表示：“我们所能做的就是大声祈祷。”

It is one of at least three foreign clothes makers⁶ to have suspended operations in Tigray. "We could have died," Waseq told Reuters.

这是蒂格雷地区至少3家暂停运营的外国服装生产商之一。瓦塞克对路透社表示：“我们可能会死。”

Uncertain future

不确定的未来

Any concern by investors could create problems for Ethiopia. The country's manufacturing export push is not yet bringing in enough foreign money to pay for its imports or keep up with rising debt costs.

投资者的任何担忧都可能给埃塞俄比亚带来麻烦。该国的制造业出口动力尚未带来足够的外国资金用于承担其进口，或是赶上不断上升的债务成本。

Before the coronavirus health crisis, the International Monetary⁷ Fund (IMF) had warned that Ethiopia was at high risk of debt problems. But Abiy's government said that Ethiopia was pushing ahead with reforms that will help build a modern economy.

在新冠病毒健康危机之前，国际货币基金组织已经警告埃塞俄比亚处于债务问题的高风险当中。但是阿比政府表示，埃塞俄比亚正在推进有助于建立现代经济的改革。

Ethiopia is a small textiles producer with exports of just $94 million in 2016. In comparison, Vietnam had $29 billion and China $253 billion in the same year, World Bank trade data showed.

埃塞俄比亚是一个小型纺织产品生产商，2016年的出口额仅为9400万美元。相比之下，世界银行的贸易数据显示，越南同期出口额为290亿美元，中国为2530亿美元。

Ethiopia's top exports are agricultural, such as coffee, tea, spices, oil seeds, plants and flowers. But the country's push into the textile industry has been a sign of its hope to increase manufacturing.

埃塞俄比亚的主要出口产品在农业方面，例如咖啡、茶、香料、油籽、植物以及花卉。但是进军纺织业已经表明该国希望提升制造业。

As fighting neared Tigray's regional capital, Mekelle, textile companies began closing factories and pulling out workers. "It seemed that the conflict was getting closer to the city, and our worry was that we wouldn't be able to leave," said Cristiano Frati to an Italian newspaper. Frati was evacuated⁸ from a factory run by Italian company Calzedonia.

随着战斗在蒂格雷州首府迈凯尔市附近打响，纺织公司开始关闭工厂并撤离工人。克里斯蒂亚诺·芙拉蒂对一家意大利报社表示：“冲突似乎越来越靠近这座城市，我们担心没法离开这里。”芙拉蒂是从意大Calzedonia公司经营的工厂撤离。

DBL has also flown its foreign workers out of Ethiopia. "Everything has become uncertain," its director M.A. Jabbar said. "When will the war end?"

DBL公司也已经将其外国员工空运撤出埃塞俄比亚。该公司董事长贾巴尔表示：“一切都变得不确定。战争何时会结束？”

Even before the recent conflict, insurance companies had stopped giving support beyond Ethiopia's northern Amhara area and the federal capital Addis Ababa.

甚至在最近的冲突前，保险公司已经停止在埃塞俄比亚北部的阿姆哈拉地区以及联邦首都亚的斯亚贝巴以外的地方提供支持。

An adviser⁹ who works with foreign companies told Reuters, "Ethiopia is not a pretty picture right now."

一位与外资公司合作的顾问对路透社表示：“埃塞俄比亚目前情况不妙。”

1 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

2 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

3 swarms   

蜂群，一大群( swarm的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They came to town in swarms. 他们蜂拥来到城里。
• On June the first there were swarms of children playing in the park. 6月1日那一天，这个公园里有一群群的孩子玩耍。

4 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

5 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

6 makers   

n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
• The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 monetary   

adj.货币的，钱的；通货的；金融的；财政的

参考例句：

• The monetary system of some countries used to be based on gold.过去有些国家的货币制度是金本位制的。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。

8 evacuated   

撤退者的

参考例句：

• Police evacuated nearby buildings. 警方已将附近大楼的居民疏散。
• The fireman evacuated the guests from the burning hotel. 消防队员把客人们从燃烧着的旅馆中撤出来。

9 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。