你的祖国的竞争力如何?
时间:2019-01-12 作者:英语课 分类:2015年VOA慢速英语(十)月
AS IT IS 2015-10-05 How Competitive Is Your Country? 你的祖国的竞争力如何?
The Swiss-based World Economic Forum 1 released its latest Global Competitiveness Report this week.
The report rated Switzerland as the world’s most competitive country for the seventh year. Next on the list were Singapore and the United States. Others among the top 10 were Germany, Netherlands, Japan, Hong Kong, Finland, Sweden, and Britain.
The report said countries need to accept the reforms needed to improve productivity. They also need to support entrepreneurs. If not, the report says the countries will be less competitive. It says promoting productivity is important for growth, and to lower unemployment.
Most countries report economic growth. But growth is weaker than before the 2008 financial crisis, the report says. The report warns developing countries which fail to compete enough will not be able to deal with future shocks to the world economy.
Margareta Drzeniek-Hanouz is head of Global Competitiveness and Risks at the World Economic Forum. She says digital technology in machinery 2 and manufacturing is important worldwide.
But, it is the “human factor” that is critical to competitiveness, she says.
“The human factor includes two broad categories of issues. One is education and everything related to education. So how do countries nurture 3 talent, but also the flexibility 4 of the labor 5 market, so the ability of the business sector 6 to adapt to changes in the country.”
The 2015-2016 report used 12 pillars, or groupings, to rate a nation’s competitiveness. These include roads and other infrastructure 7, health and primary education, business sophistication and innovation.
Major findings show the larger emerging markets are making little progress in competitiveness. But, the report notes India and South Africa appear to be exceptions. Both countries moved up in the ratings.
The report says 28th-ranked China is the most competitive of this group of economies. But, it says China’s failure to move up in the rankings shows the country is facing some difficult economic issues.
The report says African countries south of the Sahara continue to grow at close to five percent a year. But uneven 8 commodity prices have hurt competitiveness and productivity. In sub-Saharan Africa, 46th-ranked Mauritius remains 9 the area’s most competitive economy. It is followed closely by South Africa and Rwanda.
Words in This Story
entrepreneur(s) – n. someone who organizes, launches and directs a business
sophistication – n. having or showing a lot of experience and knowledge about the world or culture
innovation – n. the act or process of introducing new ideas, devices or methods
emerging – adj. newly noticed; growing in strength or popularity; becoming widely known or established
commodity – n. an agricultural product or some other unprocessed product that can be bought and sold
- 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。
- Has the machinery been put up ready for the broadcast?广播器材安装完毕了吗?
- Machinery ought to be well maintained all the time.机器应该随时注意维护。
- The tree grows well in his nurture.在他的培育下这棵树长得很好。
- The two sisters had received very different nurture.这俩个姊妹接受过极不同的教育。
- Her great strength lies in her flexibility.她的优势在于她灵活变通。
- The flexibility of a man's muscles will lessen as he becomes old.人老了肌肉的柔韧性将降低。
- We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
- He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后,他已经疲惫不堪了。
- The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
- The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。
- We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
- We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设,发展各类群众文化。
- The sidewalk is very uneven—be careful where you walk.这人行道凹凸不平—走路时请小心。
- The country was noted for its uneven distribution of land resources.这个国家以土地资源分布不均匀出名。