VOA慢速英语2023--India’s Rice Export Restrictions Affects Asia, Africa

India’s Rice Export Restrictions¹ Affects Asia, Africa

India's decision to halt some rice exports to prevent high prices at home has had affects stretching across Asia to Africa, observers say.

Rice prices in Kenya, for example, jumped when Russia invaded Ukraine. Russia is a big producer of fertilizer. That problem combined with years of little rain in the Horn of Africa hurt East Africa's rice production. Low-cost rice from India helped fill Africa's needs, feeding hundreds of thousands of people who live in poor areas of Nairobi on less than $2 a day.

But the price of a 25-kilogram container of rice in Kenya has risen by more than 12 percent, or more than $14 since June. Importers there say they have not received shipments from India.

Fifty-one-year-old Francis Ndege has been selling rice to the poor in Nairobi for 30 years. He said, "I'm really hoping the imports keep coming."

Cutting food exports is part of India's effort to keep prices at home low to prevent widespread public anger at the government. The restrictions, however, take 9.5 million metric tons off the worldwide market. That is about a fifth of rice exports worldwide.

An inflection point

In addition to India's moves, the Associated Press reports that Vietnam's rice export prices have reached a 15 year high. And Russia, which had earlier agreed to permitted agricultural exports from Ukraine, withdrew a United Nations-supported deal last month.

Beau Damen works with natural resources in Bangkok for the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization. He said the world is at an "inflection point."

Even before India restricted rice exports, countries were buying rice with the expectation that supplies would soon be limited.

Some observers worry that other nations will follow India. The AP reports that the United Arab Emirates has suspended rice exports to preserve supplies although it is not a supplier. Other observers worry that bad weather will affect rice harvests. They are saying the El Niño ocean event could affect harvests in many countries.

El Niño is a warm southern Pacific Ocean current that affects weather across a large area of the world. It takes place regularly but is difficult to predict.

Rice demand in Africa growing

In Africa, rice consumption has been growing regularly. Most countries depend heavily on imports. Some African nations with growing populations are trying to grow their own rice. But the results have not been what some had hoped.

Amadou Khan is a 52-year-old unemployed² father of five children in Dakar. He said his children eat rice with every meal except breakfast. He said his family is "just getting by."

Seventy percent of Senegal's imported rice comes from India, but it is now too costly³. So, Khan is buying rice grown at home which is two-thirds the price.

Senegal's agriculture ministry⁴ said more than half of the country's demand is grown locally. The ministry said Senegal is not "far from being self-sufficient."

Asian countries grow and use 90 percent of the world's rice. But even in Asia, some countries are struggling. The Philippines, for example, had an estimated 22 percent of its yearly production damaged by Typhoon Doksuri. The U.S. Department of Agriculture says the Philippines is the second largest rice importer after China.

‘No one wants to take the risk'

India's export restrictions and production problems blamed on the weather there make it an undependable export partner. That is what Ashok Gulati of the Indian Council for Research and International Economic relations said. He added, "That's not good for the export business because it takes years to develop these markets."

Vietnam hopes to make gains during the current market movements. With prices high, it hopes to increase production. The Agriculture Ministry also wants to use more land in the Mekong Delta⁵ to grow rice. The Philippines is negotiating with Vietnam to get favorable prices. Vietnam also wants to target Britain, which gets rice from India.

Thailand is another big rice producer. The government expects to export more rice this year than last. Exports in the first six months of 2023 were 15 percent higher than the same period last year.

But the situation in India has farmers and traders worried. Charoen Laothamatas is president of the Thai Rice Exporters Association. He said farmers are raising prices for unmilled rice and mill operators, who process the rice, are unwilling⁶ to sell it. The millers⁷ want to get the best price under current market conditions.

Lack of clarity about supplies leaves exporters unsure about prices and leads to an unwillingness⁸ to sell.

As a result, Laothamatas noted⁹, "No one wants to take the risk."

Words in This Story

inflection point –n. (math) the point where a process changes suddenly or in an important way

consumption –n. the act of using or buying some product

self-sufficient –adj. able to live or operate without assistance from others

unmilled –adj. grain that is not processed with machinery to remove undesirable parts of the seed

1 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

2 unemployed   

adj.失业的，没有工作的；未动用的，闲置的

参考例句：

• There are now over four million unemployed workers in this country.这个国家现有四百万失业人员。
• The unemployed hunger for jobs.失业者渴望得到工作。

3 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

4 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

5 delta   

n.（流的）角洲

参考例句：

• He has been to the delta of the Nile.他曾去过尼罗河三角洲。
• The Nile divides at its mouth and forms a delta.尼罗河在河口分岔，形成了一个三角洲。

6 unwilling   

adj.不情愿的

参考例句：

• The natives were unwilling to be bent by colonial power.土著居民不愿受殖民势力的摆布。
• His tightfisted employer was unwilling to give him a raise.他那吝啬的雇主不肯给他加薪。

7 millers   

n.（尤指面粉厂的）厂主( miller的名词复数 )；磨房主；碾磨工；铣工

参考例句：

• Millers and bakers sought low grain prices. 磨粉厂主和面包师寻求低廉的谷物价格。 来自辞典例句
• He told me he already been acquainted with the Millers. 他跟我说他同米勒一家已经很熟。 来自互联网

8 unwillingness   

n. 不愿意，不情愿

参考例句：

• Her unwillingness to answer questions undermined the strength of her position. 她不愿回答问题，这不利于她所处的形势。
• His apparent unwillingness would disappear if we paid him enough. 如果我们付足了钱，他露出的那副不乐意的神情就会消失。

9 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。