VOA慢速英语2014 越南谋求建立高新技术产品出口

 

AS IT IS 2014-10-02 Vietnam Seeks to Build High-Tech¹ Exports 越南谋求建立高新技术产品出口

Vietnam is getting a little tired of being known for only coffee and rice exports. Now, the country is hoping to develop its high-technology industry.

Vietnam may not have its own center for high-tech businesses like Silicon² Valley in the U.S. state of California, but the country is becoming more important in the worldwide manufacturing system. The country has even attracted major technology companies like Microsoft, Samsung, and Intel.

In 2012, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung signed a plan for developing science and technology. The plan says that by 2020, the value of high-tech products should make up 45 percent of Vietnam’s gross domestic product. Gross domestic product, or GDP, is the total value of goods produced and services provided in a country during one year.

Investors³ say Vietnam is a good choice because of its location near China and important shipping⁴ routes. They also say that Vietnamese value teamwork and have a strong work ethic⁵. Many Vietnamese citizens run family businesses and have a welcoming attitude to foreigners.

Vietnam has a young, tech-savvy population that is highly interested in tablets and smartphones. The country also has a large number of recent college graduates.

However, education remains⁶ a work in progress. While school is of top importance to most families, businesses often say that students begin working without necessary skills.

Intel says it tested 2,000 graduates about six years ago. Only 40 of them had the technical ability and language skills the company needed. Since then, Intel has invested millions of dollars to educate Vietnamese students. Sherry Boger is general manager of Intel Vietnam.  She said the company sent students to universities in the United States or to an Australian university with a campus in Vietnam. Those who received scholarships work for Intel after they graduate.

Ms. Boger said one problem is that in Vietnamese classrooms, students do not feel they can ask a lot of questions.  She said, “And so what we want to be able to see in the workplace is, employees voice out their ideas, their concerns, and that we have a free-flow exchange.”

Vietnam will need this educational progress if it is going to continue developing its technology industry.

Vietnam’s General Statistics Office said electronics recently became the country’s top export, worth $21.7 billion in the first eight months of 2014. But businesses mainly put devices together and package them. They do not create high-tech products. To do that, Vietnam is hoping for technology help from foreign companies.

1 high-tech   

adj.高科技的

参考例句：

• The economy is in the upswing which makes high-tech services in more demand too.经济在蓬勃发展，这就使对高科技服务的需求量也在加大。
• The quest of a cure for disease with high-tech has never ceased. 人们希望运用高科技治疗疾病的追求从未停止过。

2 silicon   

n.硅(旧名矽)

参考例句：

• This company pioneered the use of silicon chip.这家公司开创了使用硅片的方法。
• A chip is a piece of silicon about the size of a postage stamp.芯片就是一枚邮票大小的硅片。

3 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

4 shipping   

n.船运（发货，运输，乘船）

参考例句：

• We struck a bargain with an American shipping firm.我们和一家美国船运公司谈成了一笔生意。
• There's a shipping charge of ￡5 added to the price.价格之外另加五英镑运输费。

5 ethic   

n.道德标准，行为准则

参考例句：

• They instilled the work ethic into their children.他们在孩子们的心中注入了职业道德的理念。
• The connotation of education ethic is rooted in human nature's mobility.教育伦理的内涵根源于人本性的变动性。

6 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。