VOA常速英语2007年-Summit Pledges to Wipe Out World Toilet Inadequ

By Steve Herman
New Delhi
01 November 2007

Sanitation¹ experts, town planners and economists² are among those gathered in the Indian capital for the 7th World Toilet Summit. VOA's Steve Herman reports from New Delhi that those attending the four-day summit are pledging universal access to proper sanitation facilities in less than 20 years.

As the World Toilet Summit opens, former Indian president A.P.J. Abdul Kalam leads delegates from 44 nations in a pledge to provide toilets to all people by the year 2025.

"…We solemnly affirm our resolve to accelerate the sanitation coverage³ in our respective countries to improve health, provide dignity and enhance the quality of life of our people," he said.

India is an appropriate place to highlight the lack of proper sanitation in the developing world. By some estimates, half of the people in the capital have no access to a sewage system. Nationwide, it is estimated that 700 million of the country's billion-plus people defecate in the open.

The United Nations says they are among the more than 2.5 billion people in the world who enjoy no organized sanitation system.

Summit attendees, in order to make good on their pledge, are planning to publicize the problem throughout 2008 - which the U.N. has named the International Year of Sanitation.

The campaign will have four key messages as outlined by Jon Lane, executive director of the Geneva-based Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council.

"Sanitation is vital for human health,: he said. "Number two: sanitation generates economic benefits. Number three: that sanitation contributes to dignity and social development. And, number four: that sanitation helps the environment."

Leading the campaign will be the Netherlands' Prince of Orange, who is chairman of the United Nations secretary-general's advisory⁴ board on water and sanitation.

"Policy makers⁵ are usually not faced with the horrors of lacking sanitation in their personal surroundings. So we will have to keep reminding them what it is all about," he said.

What it is all about, in the end, is human health. Experts say that at any time, half the people in developing countries are suffering from a health problem caused by unclean water and poor sanitation.

1 sanitation   

n.公共卫生，环境卫生，卫生设备

参考例句：

• The location is exceptionally poor,viewed from the sanitation point.从卫生角度来看，这个地段非常糟糕。
• Many illnesses are the result,f inadequate sanitation.许多疾病都来源于不健全的卫生设施。

2 economists   

n.经济学家，经济专家( economist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The sudden rise in share prices has confounded economists. 股价的突然上涨使经济学家大惑不解。
• Foreign bankers and economists cautiously welcomed the minister's initiative. 外国银行家和经济学家对部长的倡议反应谨慎。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 coverage   

n.报导，保险范围，保险额，范围，覆盖

参考例句：

• There's little coverage of foreign news in the newspaper.报纸上几乎没有国外新闻报道。
• This is an insurance policy with extensive coverage.这是一项承保范围广泛的保险。

4 advisory   

adj.劝告的，忠告的，顾问的，提供咨询

参考例句：

• I have worked in an advisory capacity with many hospitals.我曾在多家医院做过顾问工作。
• He was appointed to the advisory committee last month.他上个月获任命为顾问委员会委员。

5 makers   

n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
• The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》