VOA慢速：印度将在今年晚些时候成为世界上人口最多的国家
UN: India to Have World’s Largest Population Later This Year
刘立军 供稿
TRANSCRIPT
The United Nations estimates India will pass China to have the world’s largest population sometime later this year. This comes from the U.N. Population Fund’s State of the World Population report.
Both countries have over 1.4 billion people. But India will have about 3 million more people than China sometime around the middle of 2023. The last time India counted its population through a census was 2011. It is not possible to say exactly when India will overtake China. Together, the countries combine for about one third of the world’s population.
China has been the world’s largest country since at least 1950. That is the first year the U.N. issued population numbers.
India’s population is four times larger than it was when the country gained independence 76 years ago. Recent guesses said India would not surpass China in population until later this decade, but China’s birth rate has gone down. While India’s birth rate is also going down, China’s population is getting older. China’s population decreased last year for the first time in about 60 years.
India has 254 million people between the ages of 15 and 24. That is the most in the world. India’s fertility rate ― the average number of children each woman gives birth to ― has been decreasing since 1960. But the country’s medical system is improving. More babies are surviving their first year of life. The infant mortality rate has gone down over the past 30 years.
The country could become an economic power. But experts are concerned that there are not enough jobs for young Indians. If the population grows and jobs do not, many people could fall into poverty. Right now, the Center for Monitoring the Indian Economy (CMIE) says only 40 percent of working-age Indians have jobs.
Mahesh Vyas is the center’s director. He called the growing population a “demographic dividend.” But he said the country has failed to create enough jobs to see gains from its young workers. He noted that the number of jobs available in India over the last six years has remained at about 405 million.
India has changed from an impoverished nation in 1947 to Asia’s third largest economy, valued at $3 trillion. The country exports computer software and vaccines. Millions of people have moved from poverty to the middle class as the number of educated people has grown.
Poonam Muttreja is head of the Population Foundation of India. She said the country must plan now for its young people. The country needs to invest in jobs and education. “This large population will need a huge investment in skills for them to take advantage of the opportunities that will come up in the economy,” she said. She added that India needs to pay attention to women and girls as the population grows so they are not “pushed into early marriages and pregnancies, which limit their aspirations.”
The U.N. asked over 1,000 Indians questions about their concerns related to population growth. Sixty-three percent said they were worried about economic issues, followed by the environment and health and human rights.
In China, a foreign ministry spokesperson responded to the U.N.’s report and noted that the most important thing is not a country’s population, but its ability to get the most out of the people it has.
“The population is important,” said Wang Wenbin. “So is talent,” he said, noting “quality” is more important than “quantity.”
I’m Dan Friedell.
VOCABULARY
1. fertility rate: 人口出生率，生育率
2. infant mortality: 婴儿死亡率
QUESTIONS
Listen to the news and choose the best answer to each question you hear.
1. What does the United Nations estimate about India and China’s population?
A) India will have a smaller population than China.
B) China will have a larger population than India.
C) India will have a larger population than China.
D) India and China will have the same population.
2. What is the current trend in China’s population growth?
A) China’s population is increasing rapidly.
B) China’s population is decreasing due to lower birth rates and an aging population.
C) China’s population is staying the same.
D) The article does not provide information on China’s population growth.
3. What is the main concern expressed by experts regarding India’s economic potential according to the passage?
A) India’s lack of technological development.
B) India’s inability to compete with other countries.
C) India’s inability to produce enough goods for export.
D) India’s lack of job opportunities for its growing population.
4. What is Poonam Muttreja’s suggestion for India’s young people?
A) They should focus on getting married and starting families early.
B) They should leave India to find job opportunities elsewhere.
C) They should invest in the stock market to secure their financial future.
D) They need skills to take advantage of opportunities in the economy.
5. What is the main point of the statement made by China’s foreign ministry spokesperson in response to the U.N.’s report?
A) China’s population is more important than any other country’s population.
B) The U.N.’s report on population growth is inaccurate.
C) The quality of a country’s population is more important than the quantity.
D) China does not have a population problem.
KEY
1. What does the United Nations estimate about India’s and China’s population?
A) India will have a smaller population than China.
B) China will have a larger population than India.
C) India will have a larger population than China.
D) India and China will have the same population.
【答案】C
【解析】细节题。命题出处：The United Nations estimates India will pass China to have the world’s largest population sometime later this year. This comes from the U.N. Population Fund’s State of the World Population report. 听力中提到联合国估计印度人口将在今年晚些时候超过中国，成为世界人口最多的国家。因此正确答案为C。选项A和B与听力中所提到的事实相反。选项D没有提到印度和中国的人口将一样多。
2. What is the current trend in China’s population growth?
A) China’s population is increasing rapidly.
B) China’s population is decreasing due to lower birth rates and an aging population.
C) China’s population is staying the same.
D) The article does not provide information on China’s population growth.
【答案】B
【解析】推理题。命题出处：Recent guesses said India would not surpass China in population until later this decade, but China’s birth rate has gone down. While India’s birth rate is also going down, China’s population is getting older. China’s population decreased last year for the first time in about 60 years. 文章指出，中国的出生率下降，人口变老，导致去年人口出现60年来的首次下降。选项A不正确，因为文章明确提到了中国出生率下降。选项C不正确，因为文章提到了中国人口的最近下降。选项D不正确，因为文章提供了关于中国人口增长的信息。因此，正确答案是B。
3. What is the main concern expressed by experts regarding India’s economic potential according to the passage?
A) India’s lack of technological development.
B) India’s inability to compete with other countries.
C) India’s inability to produce enough goods for export.
D) India’s lack of job opportunities for its growing population.
【答案】D
【解析】推理题。命题出处：The country could become an economic power. But experts are concerned that there are not enough jobs for young Indians. If the population grows and jobs do not, many people could fall into poverty. 本文提到了专家担心印度年轻人没有足够的就业机会，如果人口增长而就业机会不增长，许多人可能会陷入贫困。文中没有提到选项A、B或C，因此它们是不正确的。因此，正确答案是D。
4. What is Poonam Muttreja’s suggestion for India’s young people?
A) They need skills to take advantage of opportunities in the economy.
B) They should leave India to find job opportunities elsewhere.
C) They should invest in the stock market to secure their financial future.
D) They should focus on getting married and starting families early.
【答案】A
【解析】细节题。命题出处：Poonam Muttreja is head of the Population Foundation of India. She said the country must plan now for its young people. The country needs to invest in jobs and education. “This large population will need a huge investment in skills for them to take advantage of the opportunities that will come up in the economy,” she said. 根据文章，Poonam Muttreja认为印度需要为年轻人在教育和就业机会方面进行投资，这个庞大的人群需要巨大的技能投资才能利用经济机遇。因此，选项D是正确答案。选项A、B和C都不正确，因为它们在文章中没有提到。
5. What is the main point of the statement made by China’s foreign ministry spokesperson in response to the U.N.’s report?
A) China’s population is more important than any other country’s population.
B) The U.N.’s report on population growth is inaccurate.
C) The quality of a country’s population is more important than the quantity.
D) China does not have a population problem.
【答案】C
【解析】推理题。命题出处：In China, a foreign ministry spokesperson responded to the U.N.’s report and noted that the most important thing is not a country’s population, but its ability to get the most out of the people it has. “The population is important,” said Wang Wenbin. “So is talent,” he said, noting “quality” is more important than “quantity.” 中国外交部发言人强调一个国家的人口素质比数量更为重要。这可以从他说”质量比数量更重要”的表述中得出。因此，选项A、B和D都是不正确的。
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