2006年VOA标准英语-New UN Fund Benefits Ivory Coast

By Franz Wild
Abidjan
16 March 2006

UN peackeepers patrol in western Ivory Coast   
  

Ivory Coast is one the first countries to benefit from a new United Nations emergency fund. The $1 million allocated² to the Abidjan office will go towards providing food, water and protection for farmers in the volatile³ west of the divided country.

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The Central Emergency Response Fund will provide immediate⁴ funding for humanitarian⁵ aid in extreme crisis situations. Some $500 million are expected for the fund, of which about half has been pledged.

Ivory Coast has received nearly a $1 million. The only other area to receive similar assistance, so far, is the drought-stricken Horn of Africa and Kenya region.

In Ivory Coast, U.N. agencies and non-governmental organizations will provide 14,000 displaced farmers and their families around the western town, Guiglo, with food, water and protection. The U.N. emergency relief coordinator⁶, Jan Egeland, who recently visited Ivory Coast, says thousands of lives are in danger. He says the humanitarian crisis is largely caused by chronic⁷ insecurity.

Abdoulaye Mar¹ Dieye  
  
The U.N. humanitarian coordinator in Ivory Coast, Abdoulaye Mar Dieye, was proud to have led his team to winning the funding ahead of other problem areas around the world.

"Our requests were well thought-out and well prepared. I think it is a credit to my colleagues. They were very quick. They were fast enough to submit the request and we got the green light from New York. That's the name of the game," said Dieye. "I'm not discounting what is happening elsewhere. It is a lesson for my colleagues in other places that when you face an emergency, you have to move fast."

 
An unidentified man walks past a bombed building (File photo) 
  
The west of Ivory Coast has not been considered safe by the U.N., ever since government supporters stormed the UN peacekeeping base in Guiglo in January. The outbreak was a reaction to what youths supporting President Laurent Gbagbo called interference by the U.N. in the conflict between the government and northern rebels that split the country in 2002.

Panicked peacekeepers killed several people in the Guiglo attack and then fled their base. U.N. humanitarian workers also withdrew from the area.

U.N. humanitarian coordinator Dieye says they have a duty to return.

"We cannot be out of it even though our assessment⁸ is that there is still a security vacuum in the west," said Dieye. "But they are the neediest there. Even though security was not guaranteed, we did not stop our support to the people. But we want to move to a bigger scale and a higher speed. For that to happen, we need security."

Although food and water is to be provided immediately, U.N. staff will only return to the western base in Duekoue gradually. The U.N. mission in Ivory Coast has also indicated it will send its peacekeepers back. More than 6,000 U.N. troops and a 4,000-strong French rapid reaction force are on the ground. They often have to deal with angry protesters, as well as armed militias⁹ and a confrontational¹⁰ army.

1 mar   

vt.破坏，毁坏，弄糟

参考例句：

• It was not the custom for elderly people to mar the picnics with their presence.大人们照例不参加这样的野餐以免扫兴。
• Such a marriage might mar your career.这样的婚姻说不定会毁了你的一生。

2 allocated   

adj. 分配的 动词allocate的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The Ford Foundation allocated millions of dollars for cancer research. 福特基金会拨款数百万美元用于癌症研究。
• More funds will now be allocated to charitable organizations. 现在会拨更多的资金给慈善组织。

3 volatile   

adj.反复无常的，挥发性的，稍纵即逝的，脾气火爆的；n.挥发性物质

参考例句：

• With the markets being so volatile,investments are at great risk.由于市场那么变化不定，投资冒着很大的风险。
• His character was weak and volatile.他这个人意志薄弱，喜怒无常。

4 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。

5 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

6 coordinator   

n.协调人

参考例句：

• The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, headed by the Emergency Relief Coordinator, coordinates all UN emergency relief. 联合国人道主义事务协调厅在紧急救济协调员领导下，负责协调联合国的所有紧急救济工作。
• How am I supposed to find the client-relations coordinator? 我怎么才能找到客户关系协调员的办公室？

7 chronic   

adj.(疾病)长期未愈的，慢性的；极坏的

参考例句：

• Famine differs from chronic malnutrition.饥荒不同于慢性营养不良。
• Chronic poisoning may lead to death from inanition.慢性中毒也可能由虚弱导致死亡。

8 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

9 militias   

n.民兵组织，民兵( militia的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The troops will not attempt to disarm the warring militias. 部队并不打算解除战斗中的民兵武装。 来自辞典例句
• The neighborhood was a battleground for Shiite and Sunni militias. 那里曾是什叶派和逊尼派武装分子的战场。 来自互联网

10 confrontational   

adj.挑衅的；对抗的

参考例句：

• Fans love rappers partly because they strike such a confrontational pose. 乐迷热爱这些饶舌艺人一定程度上是因为他们所采取的那种战斗姿态。 来自互联网
• You prefer a non confrontational approach when it comes to resolving disputes. 面对争端，你不喜欢采用对抗性的手段来解决。 来自互联网