VOA常速英语2008年-UN Chief Urges Programs to Empower Women

By Margaret Besheer
United Nations
06 March 2008

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon observed International Women's Day with a call for the public and private sectors¹ to step up investment in programs that empower women.  From U.N. headquarters in New York, VOA's Margaret Besheer has more.

The secretary-general said there is indisputable evidence that investing in women and girls enhances productivity and sustained economic growth.

"Investing in women is not only the right thing to do, it is the smart thing to do," he said.  "I am deeply convinced that in women, the world has at its disposal the most significant and yet largely untapped potential for development and peace."

Speaking at a conference in observance of International Women's Day, which is on Saturday, Mr. Ban urged the public and private sectors, as well as multilateral organizations and civil society to increase their role in investing in programs that empower women.

He pointed² to the success of programs that offer micro-loans to women, saying they have jumped from 10 million in 1999 to nearly 70 million in 2005.

"When women have access to finances, credit, technologies and markets, they are likely to expand their businesses and contribute effectively to sustained economic growth and development," he added.

The United Nations has pushed for new policies for gender³ equality and financing for development, but there is still a long way to go.  The World Bank estimates that 64 percent of the world's illiterate⁴ adults are women, while girls account for the majority of the world's 113 million children aged⁵ six to 11 who do not attend school. 

Celebrated⁶ on March 8, International Women's Day is the global day recognizing all women around the world and intended to inspire them to achieve their full potential.  In many countries it is an official holiday.

1 sectors   

n.部门( sector的名词复数 )；领域；防御地区；扇形

参考例句：

• Berlin was divided into four sectors after the war. 战后柏林分成了4 个区。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Industry and agriculture are the two important sectors of the national economy. 工业和农业是国民经济的两个重要部门。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

2 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

3 gender   

n.（生理上的）性，（名词、代词等的）性

参考例句：

• French differs from English in having gender for all nouns.法语不同于英语，所有的名词都有性。
• Women are sometimes denied opportunities solely because of their gender.妇女有时仅仅因为性别而无法获得种种机会。

4 illiterate   

adj.文盲的；无知的；n.文盲

参考例句：

• There are still many illiterate people in our country.在我国还有许多文盲。
• I was an illiterate in the old society,but now I can read.我这个旧社会的文盲，今天也认字了。

5 aged   

adj.年老的，陈年的

参考例句：

• He had put on weight and aged a little.他胖了，也老点了。
• He is aged,but his memory is still good.他已年老，然而记忆力还好。

6 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。