VOA标准英语2009-Ghana Lawmakers Want Oil Profits Invested Re

By Scott Stearns
Dakar
14 November 2009

Ghana is set to begin oil and gas production at a new off-shore field.  Officials expect the increase in output to bring the country as much as $1 billion a year. Lawmakers want to ensure that those profits are spent responsibly.

Ghana's offshore¹ Jubilee² Field is set to begin producing oil and natural gas next year that could earn the country as much as 20 billion dollars over the next 20 years.

But the new government need look no farther than neighboring Nigeria to see how quickly squandered³ oil wealth can bring resentment⁴, violence, and environmental destruction.

So lawmakers in Ghana want to make sure they have a plan in place for spending that oil revenue responsibly before the money starts coming in.

Parliamentarian Catherine Afeku says expectations are high in Ghana and the benefits to come must be shared by those who live in oil producing areas. "For the longest [time] we have not had this kind of resource, and everybody associates the black gold with real social infrastructure⁵. Coming from the Nzema area where the oil is there must be a bill, a law promoting the use of local content in some of the real jobs that the people of the area would be able to use," she said.

Abdulai Daramani is the environmental program officer for the Accra-based advocacy group Third World Network-Africa. While expectations are high, he says the risk that Ghanaians will be disappointed is just as high unless there is a proper legal framework to disclose how much money is being made and where it is going. "I am not too sure the level of impact that the oil will make if we don't have safeguards against waste, safeguards against corporate⁶ exploitation and safeguards against abuse of power and political discretions. So for us to be able to meet those high hopes we need to manage the oil revenue effectively, and that requires the need for us to put in place concrete terms and conditions that optimize⁷ the oil revenue for us," he said.

Lawmaker James Afedzi is Chairman of the Parliamentary Finance Committee. He says President John Atta-Mills' government  is drafting legislation to regulate oil revenue and will soon present its recommendations to legislators. "We are waiting for the legislation to come from the executive to the House, and then we will look at the options that are available to the government. Then we will take a decision. But my expectation is that the revenue that will be generating from that find must be used in a way that will benefit everybody," he said.

A study by the aid agency Oxfam America and Ghana's Integrated Social Development Center says the transparent⁸ management of oil funds not only improves public spending but gives the public greater confidence that their money is being spent wisely.

Parliamentarian Afeku wants the new law to include mandatory⁹ investments in job training and education. "We should be able to create a fund that is transparent so it would actually promote education in those sectors¹⁰ - our engineers, pipeline¹¹ designers - people who would be directly involved in the industry from Ghana, so that they would take on when we are gone. We are still a developing nation I would rather see it used in developing the infrastructure of the nation. So children can actually go to better schools equipped with IT to prepare them for the industry," she said.

The next test for Ghana's government is overseeing the sale of Kosmos Energy's stake in the Jubilee Field - a stake that is worth more than three billion dollars. Exxon-Mobil, British Petroleum¹², and China's National Offshore Oil Company are all bidding for that stake.

Industry analysts¹³ say Ghana's government hopes to find the financing to acquire the Kosmos stake itself, then sell it off to the highest bidder¹⁴ and reinvest the profits in the National Petroleum Corporation, which already holds 13 percent of the Jubilee Field.

 

1 offshore   

adj.海面的，吹向海面的；adv.向海面

参考例句：

• A big program of oil exploration has begun offshore.一个大规模的石油勘探计划正在近海展开。
• A gentle current carried them slowly offshore.和缓的潮流慢慢地把他们带离了海岸。

2 jubilee   

n.周年纪念；欢乐

参考例句：

• They had a big jubilee to celebrate the victory.他们举行盛大的周年纪念活动以祝贺胜利。
• Every Jubilee,to take the opposite case,has served a function.反过来说，历次君主巡幸，都曾起到某种作用。

3 squandered   

v.（指钱，财产等）浪费，乱花( squander的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He squandered all his money on gambling. 他把自己所有的钱都糟蹋在赌博上了。
• She felt as indignant as if her own money had been squandered. 她心里十分生气，好像是她自己的钱给浪费掉了似的。 来自飘（部分）

4 resentment   

n.怨愤，忿恨

参考例句：

• All her feelings of resentment just came pouring out.她一股脑儿倾吐出所有的怨恨。
• She cherished a deep resentment under the rose towards her employer.她暗中对她的雇主怀恨在心。

5 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。

6 corporate   

adj.共同的，全体的；公司的，企业的

参考例句：

• This is our corporate responsibility.这是我们共同的责任。
• His corporate's life will be as short as a rabbit's tail.他的公司的寿命是兔子尾巴长不了。

7 optimize   

v.使优化 [=optimise]

参考例句：

• We should optimize the composition of the Standing Committees.优化人大常委会组成人员的结构。
• We should optimize our import mix and focus on bringing in advanced technology and key equipment.优化进口结构，着重引进先进技术和关键设备。

8 transparent   

adj.明显的，无疑的；透明的

参考例句：

• The water is so transparent that we can see the fishes swimming.水清澈透明，可以看到鱼儿游来游去。
• The window glass is transparent.窗玻璃是透明的。

9 mandatory   

adj.命令的；强制的；义务的；n.受托者

参考例句：

• It's mandatory to pay taxes.缴税是义务性的。
• There is no mandatory paid annual leave in the U.S.美国没有强制带薪年假。

10 sectors   

n.部门( sector的名词复数 )；领域；防御地区；扇形

参考例句：

• Berlin was divided into four sectors after the war. 战后柏林分成了4 个区。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Industry and agriculture are the two important sectors of the national economy. 工业和农业是国民经济的两个重要部门。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

11 pipeline   

n.管道，管线

参考例句：

• The pipeline supplies Jordan with 15 per cent of its crude oil.该管道供给约旦15%的原油。
• A single pipeline serves all the houses with water.一条单管路给所有的房子供水。

12 petroleum   

n.原油，石油

参考例句：

• The Government of Iran advanced the price of petroleum last week.上星期伊朗政府提高了石油价格。
• The purpose of oil refinery is to refine crude petroleum.炼油厂的主要工作是提炼原油。

13 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

14 bidder   

n.(拍卖时的)出价人，报价人，投标人

参考例句：

• TV franchises will be auctioned to the highest bidder.电视特许经营权将拍卖给出价最高的投标人。
• The bidder withdrew his bid after submission of his bid.投标者在投标之后撤销了投标书。