2006年VOA标准英语-African-Americans, Africans Discuss Economic De

By Carolyn Weaver¹
Abuja, Nigeria
28 July 2006
 
watch African Summit report

African-Americans who want to help develop the homeland of their ancestors -- and to strengthen cultural and social links with Africans -- have held a biannual² meeting in Africa since 1991. The summit was created by the late civil rights leader Reverend Leon H. Sullivan, and this year's meeting in Abuja, Nigeria was the second since his death in 2001.

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The summit meeting attracted business and political leaders from Africa and the US 
   
  
The seventh Leon H. Sullivan Summit focused on forging new ties between Africans and African-Americans, and encouraging business investment in Africa. Many of the approximately 200 people on the chartered flight to Africa were employees or associates of the Leon H. Sullivan Foundation, which paid their expenses and those of several reporters on the trip. Traditional Nigerian dancers welcomed the American visitors to five days of discussions, state dinners, and musical and theatrical³ performances. Some of the high-profile speakers included World Bank head Paul Wolfowitz, former U.S. president Bill Clinton, and the leaders of a dozen African states, including the meeting's host, Nigerian president Olesegun Obasanjo.

The event was chaired by two longtime friends of Obasanjo, former U.S. ambassador to the U.N. Andrew Young, who heads the Sullivan Foundation board, and his business partner, Carlton Masters. Their lobbying firm, Goodworks International, has received nearly $2 million from the Nigerian government since 2001 for representing it in Washington, according to government filings. The meeting's main sponsor, Chevron⁴, an energy extracter in the troubled Niger River delta⁵ region, is another Goodworks client.

 
Summit co-chair and former ambassador to the U.N. Andrew Young
  
But Andrew Young says that making money isn't the point of his work in Africa. "We have signed agreements with a number of African countries," he told reporters in Abuja. "We don't always get paid. And that's not really that important to us. We try to help make these countries and American businesses work together. And when we do, we usually get a small commission on any project that we put together."

Young said that only private business development can answer Africa's greatest needs. And he said that investment in Africa is a winning proposition for American companies, too. "The 17 million cell phones that sold here in Nigeria were made by Motorola, most of them," he said. "Africa buys everything that we make. You look around here, and General Motors is represented, Caterpillar⁶ is represented. Coca-Cola is the largest employer on the African continent. And Coca-Cola makes money. Coca-Cola gets better profits here in Nigeria than they do almost anywhere else in the world."

Americans being welcomed in Abuja for the Sullivan Summit
   
  
Reverend Leon H. Sullivan was a Philadelphia minister and civil rights activist⁷ who became the first black to sit on the board of a major American company when he joined General Motors' board in 1971. He's credited with helping⁸ to overturn South African apartheid by successfully pressing American companies to adopt the "Sullivan principles" for doing business: racial equality, fair treatment of workers, and the promotion⁹ of sustainable development. He also founded job training and international aid programs.

"He brought so many of my people for training to be educated for business," recalled Chief Johnson Femi Adalemo, who first met Reverend Sullivan in 1966. "Like he said, he was building bridges. And he has built it. This is what you have seen today. We are very proud of him."

Heads of a dozen African states attended the Summit hosted by Nigerian president Olesgun Obasanjo (center)
   
  
Martin Luther King III, a son of the slain¹⁰ civil rights leader, said this year's summit was his first. "I have always been moved by the vision of Dr. Sullivan," King said. "He saw -- over 20 years ago -- that it was very important for African-Americans to have strong relationships with Africans. And any time you are able to convene¹¹ heads of state, business people, people from all around the world, to talk about a common vision, in a real sense it always is a learning experience."

"One of the things we talked about is the brain drain," said Nigerian-born doctor Alawode Oladele, who lives in the U.S. and works with Andrew Young on an Africa-centered nutrition project. "We have a lot of professionals who go off to Europe and the United States, and do not come back to be involved in their community. One of the things I did, and it was announced during the summit, was to arrange for the donation of a million dollars worth of [medical] resources and equipment to Nigeria on behalf of the Sullivan Foundation."

Leon Sullivan also made a cause of African debt relief, Nigerian journalist Michael Maseya noted¹², although he did not live to see its success.  In April, Nigeria was relieved of 60 percent of its foreign debt -- and paid off the rest. "We are beginning to see now the post-debt era, as a very, very successful era," Mr. Maseya said. "Now we have time to concentrate on our education, we have more funds to divert to the health sector¹³, and also to the infrastructure¹⁴ to encourage the foreigners to come in to invest. And above all, Nigerians are now creditworthy."

 
Timothy Oviasogie is concerned about slumdwellers whose shantytown in Abuja was recently demolished¹⁵ 
  
But despite the country's oil wealth, most Nigerians remain desperately¹⁶ poor. A visit to a shantytown just minutes from the luxury hotel hosting the summit reinforced that reality. Public relations executive Timothy Oviasogie said the government had begun demolishing¹⁷ the slum a few days before, giving residents nowhere to go. "To the best of my knowledge, this had existed here for over six years," he said, gesturing at a field of debris¹⁸, "and now it has been demolished, without adequate notice." Nigerian officials did not respond to a request for comment. The scene was a reminder¹⁹ of the problems that motivated Leon Sullivan to begin holding summits in Africa.

Nigerian business journalist Justus Nduwugwe said there is only one way to measure the success of the meeting. "We want to know if these summits will touch the people," he said. "The usefulness of the summit is when it touches the people." Ndugwugwe suggested that future Sullivan summits also include sessions to review the implementation²⁰ of agreements made at the previous meeting. The next Leon H. Sullivan Summit will be held in 2008 in Tanzania. 

Some footage courtesy Motion Masters, West Virginia

1 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。

2 biannual   

adj.一年两次的

参考例句：

• I have to make a biannual report next Monday.下周一我得作半年度报告。
• Our school doctor recommends a biannual visit to the dentist.我们校医建议一年去看牙医两次。

3 theatrical   

adj.剧场的，演戏的；做戏似的，做作的

参考例句：

• The final scene was dismayingly lacking in theatrical effect.最后一场缺乏戏剧效果，叫人失望。
• She always makes some theatrical gesture.她老在做些夸张的手势。

4 chevron   

n.V形臂章；V形图案

参考例句：

• He wore shoulderstrap rank slides with sergeant's chevrons.他佩戴标示级别的肩章，上面有中士的V形标志。
• The chevron or arrow road sign indicates a sharp bend to the left or right.V形或箭头路标表示有向左或向右的急转弯。

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 caterpillar   

n.毛虫，蝴蝶的幼虫

参考例句：

• A butterfly is produced by metamorphosis from a caterpillar.蝴蝶是由毛虫脱胎变成的。
• A caterpillar must pass through the cocoon stage to become a butterfly.毛毛虫必须经过茧的阶段才能变成蝴蝶。

7 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

8 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

9 promotion   

n.提升，晋级；促销，宣传

参考例句：

• The teacher conferred with the principal about Dick's promotion.教师与校长商谈了迪克的升级问题。
• The clerk was given a promotion and an increase in salary.那个职员升了级，加了薪。

10 slain   

杀死，宰杀，杀戮( slay的过去分词 )； (slay的过去分词)

参考例句：

• The soldiers slain in the battle were burried that night. 在那天夜晚埋葬了在战斗中牺牲了的战士。
• His boy was dead, slain by the hand of the false Amulius. 他的儿子被奸诈的阿缪利乌斯杀死了。

11 convene   

v.集合，召集，召唤，聚集，集合

参考例句：

• The Diet will convene at 3p.m. tomorrow.国会将于明天下午三点钟开会。
• Senior officials convened in October 1991 in London.1991年10月，高级官员在伦敦会齐。

12 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。

13 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

14 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

15 demolished   

v.摧毁( demolish的过去式和过去分词 )；推翻；拆毁（尤指大建筑物）；吃光

参考例句：

• The factory is due to be demolished next year. 这个工厂定于明年拆除。
• They have been fighting a rearguard action for two years to stop their house being demolished. 两年来，为了不让拆除他们的房子，他们一直在进行最后的努力。

16 desperately   

adv.极度渴望地，绝望地，孤注一掷地

参考例句：

• He was desperately seeking a way to see her again.他正拼命想办法再见她一面。
• He longed desperately to be back at home.他非常渴望回家。

17 demolishing   

v.摧毁( demolish的现在分词 )；推翻；拆毁（尤指大建筑物）；吃光

参考例句：

• The machine was designed specially for demolishing old buildings. 这种机器是专为拆毁旧楼房而设计的。 来自《用法词典》
• Conventional demolishing work would have caused considerable interruptions in traffic. 如果采用一般的拆除方法就要引起交通的严重中断。 来自辞典例句

18 debris   

n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片

参考例句：

• After the bombing there was a lot of debris everywhere.轰炸之后到处瓦砾成堆。
• Bacteria sticks to food debris in the teeth,causing decay.细菌附着在牙缝中的食物残渣上，导致蛀牙。

19 reminder   

n.提醒物，纪念品；暗示，提示

参考例句：

• I have had another reminder from the library.我又收到图书馆的催还单。
• It always took a final reminder to get her to pay her share of the rent.总是得发给她一份最后催缴通知，她才付应该交的房租。

20 implementation   

n.实施，贯彻

参考例句：

• Implementation of the program is now well underway.这一项目的实施现在行情看好。