VOA常速英语2007-Liberia Says World Trade Must Benefit Poor

By Lisa Schlein
Geneva
04 October 2007

Talks to open up world trade hold the key to prosperity for poor countries, Liberia's Foreign Minister said on Thursday. The minister made her remarks at a forum¹ on globalization at the World Trade Organization in Geneva, where Lisa Schlein reports for VOA.

Liberia, emerging after 14 years of civil war, is one of the poorest countries in the world. About 80 percent of its population lives on $1 a day. Only 20 percent is literate².

The country's foreign minister, Olubanke King-Akerele, is hoping the Doha round of negotiations³, launched nearly six years ago to boost the world economy by opening up trade, will provide a much-needed boost for the country's economy.

Unlike previous global trade negotiations, it aims specifically to help developing countries by rebalancing world trade rules.

King-Akerele said increased trading opportunities from the Doha round would not only provide hope to people in Liberia but would help in ...

"Strengthening peace and building security, regional and internal through economic revitalization which is essential, if not the most vital task for Liberia," she said. "Our integration⁴ into the world economy. Linking farmers, small businesses and entrepreneurs with external markets will play a central role in the economic revitalization of Liberia."

Diplomats⁵ have been working intensely in Geneva in recent weeks to conclude a Doha deal.

The United States is under pressure to cut farm subsidies⁶ and other rich countries in the European Union to cut their tariffs⁷ on agricultural products. In return, rich countries want developing nations to open up their markets to manufactured goods by cutting tariffs.

Despite the talk about equitable⁸ trade, King-Akerele says not everyone benefits equally.

She says the WTO and the countries negotiating a new trade agreement have it within their power to create a more just system.

"If Doha fails, the international community will have failed the global poor," she said. "The achievable goal is to create a synergy where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Let us work to dispel⁹ any notion of a zero sum game in which rich countries or poor countries win at the expense of the other. Instead, let us create a fair-trade framework, one that emphasizes equitable development, that will expand the pie and extend maximum benefits to all."

WTO Director-General Pascal Lamy told forum participants progress is being made in the key agriculture and industry talks, and negotiations are speeding up in other areas such as services, which account for more than two thirds of the global economy.

1 forum   

n.论坛，讨论会

参考例句：

• They're holding a forum on new ways of teaching history.他们正在举行历史教学讨论会。
• The organisation would provide a forum where problems could be discussed.这个组织将提供一个可以讨论问题的平台。

2 literate   

n.学者；adj.精通文学的，受过教育的

参考例句：

• Only a few of the nation's peasants are literate.这个国家的农民中只有少数人能识字。
• A literate person can get knowledge through reading many books.一个受过教育的人可以通过读书而获得知识。

3 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

4 integration   

n.一体化，联合，结合

参考例句：

• We are working to bring about closer political integration in the EU.我们正在努力实现欧盟內部更加紧密的政治一体化。
• This was the greatest event in the annals of European integration.这是欧洲统一史上最重大的事件。

5 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 subsidies   

n.补贴，津贴，补助金( subsidy的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• European agriculture ministers failed to break the deadlock over farm subsidies. 欧洲各国农业部长在农业补贴问题上未能打破僵局。
• Agricultural subsidies absorb about half the EU's income. 农业补贴占去了欧盟收入的大约一半。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 tariffs   

关税制度； 关税( tariff的名词复数 )； 关税表； （旅馆或饭店等的）收费表； 量刑标准

参考例句：

• British industry was sheltered from foreign competition by protective tariffs. 保护性关税使英国工业免受国际竞争影响。
• The new tariffs have put a stranglehold on trade. 新的关税制对开展贸易极为不利。

8 equitable   

adj.公平的；公正的

参考例句：

• This is an equitable solution to the dispute. 这是对该项争议的公正解决。
• Paying a person what he has earned is equitable. 酬其应得,乃公平之事。

9 dispel   

vt.驱走，驱散，消除

参考例句：

• I tried in vain to dispel her misgivings.我试图消除她的疑虑，但没有成功。
• We hope the programme will dispel certain misconceptions about the disease.我们希望这个节目能消除对这种疾病的一些误解。