VOA标准英语2015--营养不良仍然是南苏丹难民严重的问题

Malnutrition¹ Remains² Serious Problem for South Sudanese Refugees 营养不良仍然是南苏丹难民严重的问题

ARUA, UGANDA—

As the civil war in South Sudan rages on, more than 100,000 refugees have fled to camps in neighboring Uganda. The United Nations Children's Fund says $36 million is needed to meet these refugees' basic needs. Recently the European Commission donated $1 million, which to UNICEF is significant, but far from enough.

By now Akon Thiong knows how to prepare the nutritious³ Plumpy’Nut for her twin daughters. It’s a peanut-based product with extra nutrients⁴ for children who are severely⁵ malnourished.

A few months ago, the two babies were underfed and in dire⁶ condition. Luckily, there was help in the refugee camp where they were born and where their mother has been living since 2013.

For many other children at the Rhino⁷ Refugee Settlement in Uganda's Arua district, malnourishment remains a serious problem. The camp holds about 90,000 refugees. Relief workers like Joseph Mbabazi, say about 20 per cent of the children are malnourished.

“The biggest issue here is the high rate of acute or severe malnutrition, especially among children below 5 years. Basically with malnutrition it’s not very cosmological you can’t see it, you have to assess the child. But when you get to see it in a visible form, that means it’s in the severest form,” he said.

Nearly two million people have been displaced from their homes., since South Sudan's civil war began in late 2013. At the moment, 136,000 live in camps across Uganda -- more than two-thirds of them women and children.

Here at the refugee camp’s health center, children are continuously being screened for malnutrition.

This girl’s condition is unfortunately not satisfactory. She needs to stay on supplements and return in a week to see whether she has gained enough weight.

Apart from screening children, UNICEF and the aid group Concern Worldwide hold training sessions for mothers, teaching them how to detect malnutrition and hopefully, prevent it.

Akon Thiong said it’s here where she learned how to make a nutritious meal for her children.

“I was taught how to make porridge for my two young babies. And also how to make tomato juice for them. That is why the children are better now,” she said.

The European Commission recently donated one million euros for the camps -- an amount which is still far from the $36 million needed to meet the refugees' basic needs. Still, UNICEF's Gerry Dyer said the organization was thankful for the donation.

“We are feeling the pressure as the rest of the world is. Just look at what recently happened in Nepal. Unfortunately, an unfolding crisis in Burundi … we are definitely feeling the pressure. The nutrition programming is a very expensive program, but it's one of the most important. A child being able to have water, a child being able to have a full stomach, it's about the dignity of these people,” he said.

With no ending to the South Sudan conflict in sight, the pressure on these camps may go on for months or years to come.

1 malnutrition   

n.营养不良

参考例句：

• In Africa, there are a lot of children suffering from severe malnutrition.在非洲有大批严重营养不良的孩子。
• It is a classic case of malnutrition. 这是营养不良的典型病例。

2 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

3 nutritious   

adj.有营养的，营养价值高的

参考例句：

• Fresh vegetables are very nutritious.新鲜蔬菜富于营养。
• Hummingbirds have discovered that nectar and pollen are very nutritious.蜂鸟发现花蜜和花粉是很有营养的。

4 nutrients   

n.（食品或化学品）营养物，营养品( nutrient的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a lack of essential nutrients 基本营养的缺乏
• Nutrients are absorbed into the bloodstream. 营养素被吸收进血液。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

6 dire   

adj.可怕的，悲惨的，阴惨的，极端的

参考例句：

• There were dire warnings about the dangers of watching too much TV.曾经有人就看电视太多的危害性提出严重警告。
• We were indeed in dire straits.But we pulled through.那时我们的困难真是大极了，但是我们渡过了困难。

7 rhino   

n.犀牛，钱, 现金

参考例句：

• The rhino charged headlong towards us.犀牛急速地向我们冲来。
• They have driven the rhino to the edge of extinction.他们已经令犀牛濒临灭绝。