DEVELOPMENT REPORT - U.N. Says Lack of Money Forces Cuts in

DEVELOPMENT REPORT - U.N. Says Lack of Money Forces Cuts in Food Aid for African Refugees
By Jill Moss¹

Broadcast: Monday, September 19, 2005

This is Shep O'Neal with the VOA Special English Development Report.

 
Severely² malnourished child in Niger - photo courtesy of UNICEF
Two United Nations agencies have appealed for more money to supply food to refugee camps in Africa. They say they have had to cut food aid to hundreds of thousands of people. Most are in West Africa and the Great Lakes area.

The World Food Program says it needs more than two hundred million dollars for its operations though the end of this year. The Office of the U.N. High Commissioner³ for Refugees says it will need at least one hundred eighty million.

The two agencies say the cuts have created suffering among those affected⁴. Special feeding programs for young children, pregnant women and new mothers have also been reduced.

Forty-four thousand Liberian refugees in Sierra Leone have received less food since May. Four hundred thousand refugees in Tanzania have been affected for almost a year. They have received only two-thirds of their daily needs. The U.N. agencies say the situation there has improved a little now, but more money is needed to prevent future cuts.

In southern Chad, refugees from the Central African Republic have also had their shipments limited.

In Sudan, the World Food Program reported a separate problem: a shortage of airplane fuel at the worst time of year. Aid workers call it the hunger season. The agency says it had to cut in half its emergency food shipments in August to more than one million people in the south. The fuel shortage also affected efforts in the Darfur area in western Sudan.

Also in Africa, there were more warnings last week about the food crisis in Niger. It follows rain shortages and a locust⁵ invasion last year. Doctors Without Borders says recent international aid has yet to help some areas that need it most. The medical aid group says tens of thousands of children still require immediate⁶ assistance.

The group found that one in five children suffered from malnutrition⁷ in the Zinder area in August. It says death rates were higher than when the crisis began in January.

Last week, the World Food Program reported "good progress" in its work in Niger. The aim is to supply food to more than three and one-half million people. But the U.N. agency says its operation remains⁸ only fifty-eight percent financed. The next harvest in most of Niger is several weeks away.

This VOA Special English Development Report was written by Jill Moss.  I'm Shep O'Neal.

1 moss   

n.苔，藓，地衣

参考例句：

• Moss grows on a rock.苔藓生在石头上。
• He was found asleep on a pillow of leaves and moss.有人看见他枕着树叶和苔藓睡着了。

2 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

3 commissioner   

n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员

参考例句：

• The commissioner has issued a warrant for her arrest.专员发出了对她的逮捕令。
• He was tapped for police commissioner.他被任命为警务处长。

4 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。

5 locust   

n.蝗虫；洋槐，刺槐

参考例句：

• A locust is a kind of destructive insect.蝗虫是一种害虫。
• This illustration shows a vertical section through the locust.本图所示为蝗虫的纵剖面。

6 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

7 malnutrition   

n.营养不良

参考例句：

• In Africa, there are a lot of children suffering from severe malnutrition.在非洲有大批严重营养不良的孩子。
• It is a classic case of malnutrition. 这是营养不良的典型病例。

8 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。