VOA标准英语2011-As Drought Intensifies, Kenya Fears Famin

Food shortages are looming¹ in Kenya as last season's lighter-than-normal rains begin to affect harvests in the arid² north.

As Kenya begins its annual dry season, there are mounting fears of crop failure and a shortages of food for residents in the dry regions of the eastern and northeastern provinces.

Last year brought early predictions of a coming drought, with groups such as the Famine Early Warning Systems Network pointing to a La Nina system in the Pacific as bringing light rainfall during the critical "short rains" period from October through December.

The Kenyan government moved to ease the blow of the light season through the distribution of drought-resistant crops and the acquisition of additional grain reserves. But it appears the measures may not be enough to prevent hunger in the coming months.

Recently, Kenya's Ministry³ of Livestock⁴ Development warned that over 150,000 camels, 6 million cattle and 16 million goats were at risk as a result of the drought conditions.

The Kenyan cabinet held a meeting Wednesday to talk about the response to the impending⁵ crisis. Government Spokesperson Alfred Mutua discusses how Kenya plans to avoid famine.

"The ministries⁶ involved will ensure that food arrives to where it is supposed to arrive, on time," said Mutua. "Second, the government will engage in the buying of cattle and livestock in endangered areas. More importantly the cabinet said that nobody should die in this country because there is plenty of food in different parts of this country. So it is a matter of transporting that food to the people who need the food."

Some feel the government intervention⁷, however, may not be enough. The Red Cross Society of Kenya is expected to launch an appeal for emergency assistance by the end of the week and has urged the government to declare a national disaster. The humanitarian⁸ group worries that dying pastures will force northern residents into even more unstable⁹ areas.

At least two people are suspected to have been killed by the drought conditions, and some northern officials estimate as many as 30,000 to be at risk. There also are fears the desperate conditions will encourage cattle rustling¹⁰ - a persistent¹¹ problem in Northern areas in which residents violently clash over livestock.

Kenya is still recovering from a massive drought from 2007-2009, which sent food prices skywards and weakened the otherwise robust¹² economy.

1 looming   

n.上现蜃景（光通过低层大气发生异常折射形成的一种海市蜃楼）v.隐约出现，阴森地逼近( loom的现在分词 )；隐约出现，阴森地逼近

参考例句：

• The foothills were looming ahead through the haze. 丘陵地带透过薄雾朦胧地出现在眼前。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Then they looked up. Looming above them was Mount Proteome. 接着他们往上看，在其上隐约看到的是蛋白质组山。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 回顾与展望

2 arid   

adj.干旱的；(土地)贫瘠的

参考例句：

• These trees will shield off arid winds and protect the fields.这些树能挡住旱风,保护农田。
• There are serious problems of land degradation in some arid zones.在一些干旱地带存在严重的土地退化问题。

3 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

4 livestock   

n.家畜，牲畜

参考例句：

• Both men and livestock are flourishing.人畜两旺。
• The heavy rains and flooding killed scores of livestock.暴雨和大水淹死了许多牲口。

5 impending   

a.imminent, about to come or happen

参考例句：

• Against a background of impending famine, heavy fighting took place. 即将发生饥荒之时，严重的战乱爆发了。
• The king convoke parliament to cope with the impending danger. 国王召开国会以应付迫近眉睫的危险。

6 ministries   

（政府的）部( ministry的名词复数 )； 神职； 牧师职位； 神职任期

参考例句：

• Local authorities must refer everything to the central ministries. 地方管理机构应请示中央主管部门。
• The number of Ministries has been pared down by a third. 部委的数量已经减少了1/3。

7 intervention   

n.介入，干涉，干预

参考例句：

• The government's intervention in this dispute will not help.政府对这场争论的干预不会起作用。
• Many people felt he would be hostile to the idea of foreign intervention.许多人觉得他会反对外来干预。

8 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。

9 unstable   

adj.不稳定的，易变的

参考例句：

• This bookcase is too unstable to hold so many books.这书橱很不结实，装不了这么多书。
• The patient's condition was unstable.那患者的病情不稳定。

10 rustling   

n. 瑟瑟声，沙沙声 adj. 发沙沙声的

参考例句：

• the sound of the trees rustling in the breeze 树木在微风中发出的沙沙声
• the soft rustling of leaves 树叶柔和的沙沙声

11 persistent   

adj.坚持不懈的，执意的；持续的

参考例句：

• Albert had a persistent headache that lasted for three days.艾伯特连续头痛了三天。
• She felt embarrassed by his persistent attentions.他不时地向她大献殷勤，使她很难为情。

12 robust   

adj.强壮的，强健的，粗野的，需要体力的，浓的

参考例句：

• She is too tall and robust.她个子太高，身体太壮。
• China wants to keep growth robust to reduce poverty and avoid job losses,AP commented.美联社评论道，中国希望保持经济强势增长，以减少贫困和失业状况。