2006年VOA标准英语-Experts Discuss Water Supply to Poor in East Af

By Cathy Majtenyi
Nairobi
29 May 2006
 
Experts from around East Africa are meeting this week in Kenya's capital to discuss how to supply one of the continent's most basic needs, clean water. In many East African cities large areas have no access to running water and are sometimes forced to turn to private vendors² who are often unregulated and offer poor quality water at high prices. Experts are trying to find ways to resolve the problem.

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Kenyan government statistics indicate that more than a million people living in the slums of Nairobi depend on a private vendors with small kiosks or tankers³ as their primary source of water.

A further 1.7 million are estimated to depend on these private vendors as a secondary water source. In a city of around three million, that means only 200,000 people have access to clean, running water all the time.

Vice-chairman of UN Secretary General's Advisory⁴ Board on Water and Sanitation⁵, Uschi Eid  
  
In the Tanzanian capital Dar es Salaam⁶, 56 percent of households get their water from private vendors, while in the Ugandan capital Kampala, private vendors supply 30 percent of households with their water.

Water experts were presenting these and other grim statistics as they opened their conference in Nairobi.

 The vice-chairman of the U.N. Secretary General's Advisory Board on Water and Sanitation, Uschi Eid, told the gathering⁷ that the world, and Sub-Saharan Africa in particular, are far from achieving the U.N. Millennium⁸ Development Goals concerning water and sanitation.

 
Permanent Secretary in Kenya's Ministry⁹ of Water and Irrigation, Mahaboub Mohamed Maalim
  
"We have less than 10 years remaining to reach the Millennium Development Goals to halving¹⁰ the proportion of people without access to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation," said Eid. "These targets are vital to reducing child mortality, combating malaria¹¹, eradicating¹² extreme poverty and hunger, empowering women, and improving the lives of slum dwellers¹³."  

The Permanent Secretary in Kenya's Ministry of Water and Irrigation Mahaboub Mohamed Maalim says the poor pay a relatively¹⁴ exorbitant¹⁵ price for their water from private vendors.

He estimates that the average low-income urban family pays approximately $140 a month for their water supply from a private vendor¹.

"In Kenyan shillings that is about nearly 10,000 shillings or so, as opposed to my bill, which rates between 2,500 and 3,000 Kenyan shillings, and therefore people [on] utility pay much less. This is something that is of concern to us in the ministry," said Maalim.

Conference participants are discussing regulations, programs, and other ways to enable slum dwellers to have more access to water and to improve existing water utilities to ensure, for instance, that there is no illegal diversion of water from pipes.

1 vendor   

n.卖主；小贩

参考例句：

• She looked at the vendor who cheated her the other day with distaste.她厌恶地望着那个前几天曾经欺骗过她的小贩。
• He must inform the vendor immediately.他必须立即通知卖方。

2 vendors   

n.摊贩( vendor的名词复数 )；小贩；（房屋等的）卖主；卖方

参考例句：

• The vendors were gazundered at the last minute. 卖主在最后一刻被要求降低房价。
• At the same time, interface standards also benefIt'software vendors. 同时，界面标准也有利于软件开发商。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

3 tankers   

运送大量液体或气体的轮船[卡车]( tanker的名词复数 )； 油轮； 罐车； 油槽车

参考例句：

• They should stop offloading waste from oil tankers into the sea. 他们应当停止从油轮上往海里倾倒废弃物。
• The harbour admits large tankers and freighters. 这个港口容得下巨型油船和货轮。

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 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。

6 salaam   

n.额手之礼，问安，敬礼；v.行额手礼

参考例句：

• And the people were so very friendly:full of huge beaming smiles,calling out "hello" and "salaam".这里的人民都很友好，灿然微笑着和我打招呼，说“哈罗”和“萨拉姆”。
• Salaam is a Muslim form of salutation.额手礼是穆斯林的问候方式。

7 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

8 millennium   

n.一千年，千禧年；太平盛世

参考例句：

• The whole world was counting down to the new millennium.全世界都在倒计时迎接新千年的到来。
• We waited as the clock ticked away the last few seconds of the old millennium.我们静候着时钟滴答走过千年的最后几秒钟。

9 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。

10 halving   

n.对分，二等分，减半[航空、航海]等分v.把…分成两半( halve的现在分词 )；把…减半；对分；平摊

参考例句：

• You searched those halving your salary cut your enthusiasm. 你呈现，薪水减半降低了你的任务热情。 来自互联网
• Halving the repeater spacing made it possible to quadruple the bandwidth. 把增音机间隔缩小一半，就能使带宽增加三倍。 来自互联网

11 malaria   

n.疟疾

参考例句：

• He had frequent attacks of malaria.他常患疟疾。
• Malaria is a kind of serious malady.疟疾是一种严重的疾病。

12 eradicating   

摧毁，完全根除( eradicate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Objective: To study the acute and chronic toxicity of Ten-flavor-acne eradicating-capsule. 目的：探讨复方中药合剂十味平痤胶囊的急性及慢性毒性。
• We are on the verge of eradicating polio in the world. 我们已在世界消除小儿？痹症的边缘了。

13 dwellers   

n.居民，居住者( dweller的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City dwellers think country folk have provincial attitudes. 城里人以为乡下人思想迂腐。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They have transformed themselves into permanent city dwellers. 他们已成为永久的城市居民。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

15 exorbitant   

adj.过分的；过度的

参考例句：

• More competition should help to drive down exorbitant phone charges.更多的竞争有助于降低目前畸高的电话收费。
• The price of food here is exorbitant. 这儿的食物价格太高。