2007年VOA标准英语-Nigerian Women Seek Empowerment as Car Mechanic

By Sarah Simpson
Lagos
24 January 2007

Educated women in Nigeria are playing a more prominent role in professions long-dominated by men. As for illiterate¹ and poorly educated women, there are few work options beyond petty trading, food preparation, or prostitution. But an initiative for disadvantaged women offers training as car mechanics and start-up tools so the women can set up their own street-side garages. Sarah Simpson reports for VOA from Lagos.

In an open-air garage in Nigeria's commercial capital, Lagos, young women in canary yellow overalls² are tuning³ cars and overturning convention, as they train to become mechanics.

They are part of the Lady Mechanic Initiative, a charity set up by Nigeria's first female mechanic, Sandra Aguebor, who wants to use her trade to empower underprivileged women, across Africa.

 
Sandra Aguebor oversees⁴ female car mechanic apprentices⁵ doing oil change 
"The Lady Mechanic Initiative works with the less privileged, the vulnerable and those orphans," explains Sandra. " And, also, the lady mechanics work with the ex-commercial sex workers, the school certificate holders⁶ who could not finish their education for any reason, the married women who also want to acquire mechanical skills - those are the people we are working with, the girl-child."

In Nigeria, as in most African countries, work opportunities are more restricted for women than men. But that is changing.

Women from oil-rich Nigeria's elite⁷ classes are increasingly taking prominent roles in politics since the end of military dictatorship in 1999.

According to the United Nations, Nigerian women are more likely to earn a wage in the non-agricultural sector⁸ than they were eight years ago.

 
Some 70 young Nigerian women from variety of ethnic⁹, religious groups training to become mechanics through Lady Mechanic Initiative
Since its launch in 2000, the Lady Mechanic Initiative has trained seven women, with limited resources. But substantial financial backing from diplomatic missions, businesses and aid groups has enabled the initiative to swell¹⁰ to 70 female trainees¹¹, based in 12 garages across Lagos State.

One of those, 23-year-old Amario Nwosu, explains how to service a car.

"Since it is servicing, first of all you gauge¹² the two tires with - you chock it. Then you bring your lying board and you lie under. Then you take your spanners along with you and…." she explains.

Nwosu has studied at the Lady Mechanic Initiative since 2005 and is scheduled to graduate as a fully¹³ trained car mechanic in May. As part of the scheme, she will be given her own set of tools.

As a trained mechanic, Nwosu can expect to earn around $250 a month, giving her a higher income than most other Nigerians. Long-term, her ambition is to maximize her earnings¹⁴ further by opening her own garage. She is confident in her recently acquired skills.

"To drop a gear box is easy for me, to service a car, move the shock absorber, the shaft¹⁵ is easy for me," Nwosu says. "But to drop an engine - ha! It is very hard and heavy, very complicated and so on. But still I have to try to assist so I can learn more about it."

Doctor Jadesola Idowu is a care coordinator¹⁶ with Hygeia Nigeria Limited. Her organization is offering support to the Lady Mechanic Initiative by providing the girls with heavily subsidized health care.

She would like to see more projects like the one set up by Sandra Aguebor, so more women can be empowered.

"If you educate the girl-child you actually educate the nation. We hope more Sandra's pop up over the nation and get girls empowered," she says.

Nigeria is Africa's most populous¹⁷ nation, with an estimated population of about 140 million people. Although Nigeria exports more oil than any other African nation, 70 percent of the population live on less than $2 a day, according to the United Nations.

1 illiterate   

adj.文盲的；无知的；n.文盲

参考例句：

• There are still many illiterate people in our country.在我国还有许多文盲。
• I was an illiterate in the old society,but now I can read.我这个旧社会的文盲，今天也认字了。

2 overalls   

n.（复）工装裤；长罩衣

参考例句：

• He is in overalls today.他今天穿的是工作裤。
• He changed his overalls for a suit.他脱下工装裤，换上了一套西服。

3 tuning   

n.调谐，调整，调音v.调音( tune的现在分词 )；调整；（给收音机、电视等）调谐；使协调

参考例句：

• They are tuning up a plane on the flight line. 他们正在机场的飞机跑道上调试一架飞机。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The orchestra are tuning up. 管弦乐队在定弦。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

4 oversees   

v.监督，监视( oversee的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• She oversees both the research and the manufacturing departments. 她既监督研究部门又监督生产部门。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Department of Education oversees the federal programs dealing with education. 教育部监管处理教育的联邦程序。 来自互联网

5 apprentices   

学徒，徒弟( apprentice的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They were mere apprentices to piracy. 他们干海盗仅仅是嫩角儿。
• He has two good apprentices working with him. 他身边有两个好徒弟。

6 holders   

支持物( holder的名词复数 )； 持有者； （支票等）持有人； 支托（或握持）…之物

参考例句：

• Slaves were mercilessly ground down by slave holders. 奴隶受奴隶主的残酷压迫。
• It is recognition of compassion's part that leads the up-holders of capital punishment to accuse the abolitionists of sentimentality in being more sorry for the murderer than for his victim. 正是对怜悯的作用有了认识，才使得死刑的提倡者指控主张废除死刑的人感情用事，同情谋杀犯胜过同情受害者。

7 elite   

n.精英阶层；实力集团；adj.杰出的，卓越的

参考例句：

• The power elite inside the government is controlling foreign policy.政府内部的一群握有实权的精英控制着对外政策。
• We have a political elite in this country.我们国家有一群政治精英。

8 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。

9 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。

10 swell   

vi.膨胀，肿胀；增长，增强

参考例句：

• The waves had taken on a deep swell.海浪汹涌。
• His injured wrist began to swell.他那受伤的手腕开始肿了。

11 trainees   

新兵( trainee的名词复数 )； 练习生； 接受训练的人； 训练中的动物

参考例句：

• We've taken on our full complement of new trainees. 我们招收的新学员已经满额了。
• The trainees were put through an assault course. 受训人员接受了突击训练课程。

12 gauge   

v.精确计量；估计；n.标准度量；计量器

参考例句：

• Can you gauge what her reaction is likely to be?你能揣测她的反应可能是什么吗？
• It's difficult to gauge one's character.要判断一个人的品格是很困难的。

13 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

14 earnings   

n.工资收人；利润，利益，所得

参考例句：

• That old man lives on the earnings of his daughter.那个老人靠他女儿的收入维持生活。
• Last year there was a 20% decrease in his earnings.去年他的收入减少了20%。

15 shaft   

n.(工具的)柄，杆状物

参考例句：

• He was wounded by a shaft.他被箭击中受伤。
• This is the shaft of a steam engine.这是一个蒸汽机主轴。

16 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？

17 populous   

adj.人口稠密的，人口众多的

参考例句：

• London is the most populous area of Britain.伦敦是英国人口最稠密的地区。
• China is the most populous developing country in the world.中国是世界上人口最多的发展中国家。