VOA常速英语:Warnings of Horn Drought Came Early

短语讲解：

1. Experts say there was plenty of warning that the Horn of Africa was likely to experience severe drought. Nevertheless, millions of people are now at risk.

plenty of很多, 大量的
例句：Plenty of people have come.
来了很多人。
at risk有危险
例句：The disease is spreading, and all children under five are at risk.
这疾病在蔓延, 五岁以下的小孩都有危险。

2. He described what’s happening in the Horn as “an illustration of regret.”

describe as形容,把...说成
例句：He describes himself as a doctor.
他声称自己是医生。

3. We are unfortunate to say that they are not very much put to the attention of policymakers for them to take preventive measures

take measure采取措施
例句：We should take appropriate measures to improve our teaching.
我们应当采取适当的措施提高教学质量。

4. Last January, meteorological experts warned that the Horn of Africa was on the verge of severe drought.

on the verge of接近于,濒临于
例句：Some animals are on the verge of extinction.
有些动物已濒临绝种。

5. And therefore, one has to face the fact that policy failures are here very much at stake

at stake濒于险境，处于成败关头
例句：The life of the patient is at stake.
病人的生命在危急中。

6. Go back to the IPCC report. It was clearly stated by scientists that have studied the issue of climate change that for nearly 10 years areas that are prone to drought – and we are talking about areas like those in the Horn of Africa – will experience more frequent droughts and more intense droughts of a much wider distance.

go back回转, 回顾, 追溯
例句：The friendly contacts between our two peoples can go back to the Tang Dynasty.
我们两国人民间的友好往来可以追溯到唐朝。
prone to倾于…
例句：Mother is prone to headache.
我母亲经常头痛。

7. Now that drought has firmly taken hold in the Horn of Africa, with famine in parts of Somalia, is it too late to act?

take hold抓住；生根，固定下来
例句：He did not let his anger take hold of him.
他设有让怒气使自己失去控制。

8. “It takes time,” he said, “but it is time which is valued to be invested in.

invest in在…上投资, 在…投入(时间、精力等)
例句：The company lacks sufficient money to invest in new products.
公司没有足够的钱对新产品投资。

9. Recommendations for dealing with the drought include a political solution to Somalia’s conflict.

deal with论述, 涉及
例句：This book deals with life in the United States.
这本书谈的是美国的生活情况。

10. Also, U.N. Convention to Combat Desertification experts and others call for greater investment in smallholder farms, empowering community-based organizations to manage the land, addressing land ownership and land degradation issues, and rolling out comprehensive national action plans on drought prevention.

call for要求
例句：The letter calls for an investigation of the facts.
来信要求对这些事实进行调查。
roll out生产
例句：Our factory rolls out 8,000 bottles of beer every day.
我们工厂每天生产8 000 瓶啤酒。