一、听力练习
1.
A. The history of motorcycle taxis in East Africa.
B. The role of motorcycle taxis (boda-bodas) in Uganda's economy and society.
C. The safety regulations for boda-boda drivers in Uganda.
D. The unemployment rate in Uganda and its impact on youth.
2.
A. The drivers are supported by the police.
B. The drivers often resist and fight back against law enforcement.
C. The drivers are organized and have powerful unions.
D. The government does not have the resources to regulate them.
3.
A. It refers to the sound the motorcycles make.
B. It is derived from a Swahili word for transportation.
C. It comes from the way drivers used to shout "border, border" to potential customers.
D. It was named after a popular Ugandan leader.
二、听力文本
For tens of thousands of men in Uganda's capital, driving a motorcycle taxi is a way to make a living. For others, the vehicles known as boda-bodas are a necessary but dangerous form of transportation in a disorderly city. The young men sit on motorcycles in the morning heat. When they see someone who might be a passenger, they start their machines and compete to offer the person a ride. The motorcycle taxis are everywhere in East African capitals like Nairobi and Kigali. But in Kampala, the numbers are huge. The city of 3 million people has no mass transportation system and a high rate of unemployment. There are around 350,000 boda-bodas. The men driving them come from all parts of Uganda. They say there are no other jobs for them. The city has tried to control them and remove them from the central business area. But it is not easy. The government fears what might happen if they anger a large group of jobless men. About 76 percent of Uganda's 43 million people are under 35, according to government figures. There are few jobs for them. The central bank reports that just one percent of Ugandan workers make $270 or more in monthly pay. Uganda's unemployment rate for people between 18 and 30 was 17 percent in 2021 - higher than for other age groups. For young people in urban areas, it was 19 percent. President Yoweri Museveni has held power since 1986. He has long welcomed the support of boda-boda men, who create a loud presence at his political rallies. Museveni has gifted boda-bodas to supporters and is reducing the three-year licensing fee from nearly $100 to about $35. Motorcycles first appeared on the Uganda-Kenya border during political instability in the 1970s. The term "boda-boda" comes from the way drivers used to shout "border, border" at possible customers. At the time, they were also a way to transport smugglers and their merchandise. Today, they are everywhere in Uganda, taking children to school, people to offices, the sick to clinics and even the dead to their burials. Each year, police reports say that motorcycle taxis help carry out violent crime. The Ministry of Works and Transport also reports that the number of deadly accidents related to motorcycles across Uganda grew from 621 in 2014 to 1,404 in 2021. Road safety regulations for motorcycles were first approved in 2004. But traffic police are often unable to make arrests for motorcyclists breaking the law. They fear fights because drivers quickly come to support one another. Many boda-boda men pay the owner of their vehicle every month. Failure to pay means the boda-boda driver loses his job along with the motorcycle.
Question 1: What is the main idea of the news report?
Question 2: Why has the Ugandan government found it difficult to control boda-boda drivers in Kampala?
Question 3: What is the origin of the term "boda-boda"?
三、重点词汇
1. disorderly: untidy and badly organized 凌乱的;无序的
四、背景知识
Boda-boda是一种自行车或摩托车出租车，来源于东非（英语：border-border）。骑车的人也可以被叫作Boda-boda。在乌干达，这一称呼通常也被简化为Boda。（背景知识来自于百度百科）
五、参考答案
Question 1: B
Question 2: B
Question 3: C
六、网络翻译
对于乌干达首都的成千上万的男人来说，驾驶摩托车出租车是一种谋生的方式。对于其他人来说，这些被称为“boda-bodas”的车辆则是混乱城市中一种必要但危险的交通工具。年轻人在早晨的酷热中坐在摩托车上。当他们看到可能成为乘客的人时，他们会启动机器，争相为这个人提供乘车服务。这些摩托车出租车在东非的首都如内罗毕和基加利随处可见。但在坎帕拉，数量非常庞大。这个拥有300万人口的城市没有大众运输系统，失业率也很高。坎帕拉大约有35万辆boda-bodas。驾驶这些摩托车的男人来自乌干达各地，他们说没有其他工作可做。市政府曾尝试控制他们，并将他们从中心商业区移除，但这并不容易。政府担心如果激怒了这大群失业的男人，会发生什么事情。根据政府数据，乌干达4300万人口中约有76%年龄在35岁以下。他们中很少有人找到工作。中央银行报告称，仅有1%的乌干达工人月薪达到或超过270美元。2021年，乌干达18到30岁年龄段的失业率为17%，高于其他年龄组。对于城市地区的年轻人来说，失业率为19%。总统约韦里·穆塞韦尼自1986年以来一直掌权。他长期以来都欢迎boda-boda司机的支持，他们在他的政治集会上制造了响亮的存在感。穆塞韦尼曾赠送boda-bodas给支持者，并将三年期的许可证费用从近100美元降至约35美元。摩托车首次出现在1970年代的乌干达-肯尼亚边境，当时的政治动荡促使了它们的出现。“boda-boda”这个词来源于司机们过去向可能的顾客喊的“border, border”。当时，它们也用来运输走私者及其货物。如今，它们遍布乌干达，载送孩子上学、人们去办公室、病人去诊所，甚至将死者送到葬礼地点。每年，警方报告称，摩托车出租车助长了暴力犯罪。交通部还报告说，乌干达各地与摩托车有关的致命事故数量从2014年的621起增加到2021年的1404起。针对摩托车的道路安全法规首次在2004年通过。但交通警察往往无法逮捕违规的摩托车手，因为他们担心发生争斗，因为司机们会迅速相互支援。许多boda-boda司机每月都要支付车辆所有者费用。如果不能按时支付，boda-boda司机将失去工作和摩托车。
七、版权说明
英文新闻来自于VOA；背景知识来自于国内等多个平台。本平台属于公益平台，未通过转载相关内容获得相关利益。文章不涉及打赏及相关产品推荐等。转载相关中文背景知识出于传递更多信息、方便学生理解相关新闻背景；英文文章及音频所传递的观点与本公众号无关。网络翻译来源于ChatGPT的在线翻译，翻译内容仅供参考。此外，内容删减仅是因为篇幅以及考虑学生接受等目的，不涉及歪曲事实观点及作者相关意见。若有来源标注错误或侵犯了您的合法权益，请与本公众号运营人员进行联系，我们将及时更正、删除，谢谢。 邮箱地址：yangyanchao@mmc.edu.mo
