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Africa’s soil is studded with buried treasure.
非洲的土地上到处都是埋藏的宝藏。
Half the world’s diamonds are mined there.
世界上一半的钻石都是在那里开采的。
The largest producers of cobalt, manganese and uranium are all African countries.
钴、锰和铀的最大生产国都是非洲国家。
Since 2000 more big petroleum discoveries have been made in sub-Saharan Africa than in any other region.
自2000年以来，在撒哈拉以南的非洲地区发现的大型石油比其他任何地区都多。
Yet Africans are not wrong when they talk of a “resource curse”.
然而，当非洲人谈到“资源诅咒”时，他们也没有错。
The continent’s political elite have squandered or stolen much of the bounty, often aided by unscrupulous private firms.
非洲大陆的政治精英们挥霍或窃取了大部分的赏金，而这些行为背后往往有无良私营公司的帮助。
The World Bank predicts that by 2030, 62% of the world’s very poor people will live in resource-rich sub-Saharan countries, up from 12% in 2000.
世界银行预测，到2030年，世界上62%的极度贫困人口将生活在资源丰富的撒哈拉以南国家，而2000年这一比例为12%。
Resource-rich states are more likely to suffer dictatorship or civil war.
资源丰富的国家更有可能遭受独裁统治或内战。
Managing resources better is crucial to the future of Africa.
更好地管理资源对非洲的未来至关重要。
The world is hungry for its hydrocarbons.
世界对碳氢化合物如饥似渴。
Its minerals are needed for cleaner energy.
它的矿产品是清洁能源所必需的。
Sadly African politicians risk wasting the moment.
遗憾的是，非洲的政客们正冒着浪费时机的风险。
Few pursue the right policies.
很少有人会采取正确的政策。
One African country, however, has been a glittering exception, at least until recently—Botswana.
然而，至少到最近为止，有个非洲国家是最耀眼的例外——博茨瓦纳。
At independence in 1966 Botswana was one of the poorest countries in the world.
1966年独立时，博茨瓦纳是世界上最贫穷的国家之一。
It sold beef but little else.
它只卖牛肉。
It was home to just 22 university graduates.
这里只有22名大学毕业生。
Over the next four decades its economic-growth rate rivalled that of China, Singapore and South Korea;
在接下来的40年里，它的经济增长率与中国、新加坡和韩国不相上下;
today it is one of the richest countries in Africa.
今天，它是非洲最富有的国家之一。
A necessary condition for its rise was the discovery in 1967 of diamonds by De Beers, a mining giant.
1967年，矿业巨头戴比尔斯发现了钻石，这是其崛起的必要条件。
But that was not sufficient: the transformation of Botswana also required the right policies.
但这还不够：博茨瓦纳的转型还需要正确的政策。
Several stand out.
有几个政策很突出。
Botswana has long offered secure property rights and a stable, clear tax regime.
博茨瓦纳长期以来一直提供有保障的产权和稳定、明确的税收制度。
Today De Beers reckons that Botswana keeps four-fifths of the revenues from Debswana, their joint mining venture, through taxes, royalties and dividends.
如今，戴比尔斯估计博茨瓦纳通过税收、特许权使用费和股息，从他们的合资矿业企业德比斯瓦纳获得了五分之四的收入。
Elsewhere in Africa firms are reluctant to invest huge sums when mines can be seized or tax rates are volatile.
在非洲其他地方，当矿山有可能被查封或税率不稳定时，企业就不愿投入巨额资金。
Neighbouring South Africa is among the world’s ten least attractive countries for investors in mines, according to the Fraser Institute, a think-tank.
据智库弗雷泽研究所称，其邻国南非是世界上对矿业投资者最不具吸引力的十个国家之一。
