Page 42 - index

2023 ‫מועד אביב‬ - 41 - ‫ פרק ראשון‬- ‫אנגלית‬

Text II (Questions 18-22)

(1) Malaria is the most prevalent parasitic disease in the world, affecting ten percent of
the global population. It proves fatal for a million or more people per year. Almost all
of the deaths occur in impoverished sub-Saharan Africa, and most of those who
succumb to the disease are children under the age of five.

(5) The link between malaria and poverty in the world's underdeveloped countries is
stronger than is generally acknowledged. "Where malaria prospers most, human
societies have prospered least," says economist Jeffrey Sachs. Reducing the incidence
of malaria by means of drugs could be an extremely cost-effective way of promoting
development and prosperity. However, international pharmaceutical companies have

(10) been reluctant to fund extensive research into vaccines and drugs to combat a disease
that primarily strikes countries that are unable to pay for treatment. On the other hand,
the international community has launched some positive initiatives. For example, the
World Health Organization has instituted the Roll Back Malaria campaign, the current
goal of which is to eliminate all deaths caused by the disease by 2030. Also, the United

(15) Nations has established the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria. The
methods employed include distribution of insecticide-treated sleeping nets and the
administration of existing drugs in various combinations.

Unfortunately, as a result of insufficient funding, none of these efforts is likely to
make great headway. An effective program to battle malaria in Africa alone would

(20) cost roughly $2 billion per year, yet global spending on attempts to fight the disease
amounts to less than $100 million annually. Although $2 billion seems an astronomical
sum, economists estimate that the expenditure would, in the long run, save Africa's
economy $12 billion each year. Not only would the benefit clearly exceed the cost in
dollars and cents, but millions of lives would be saved.

Questions

18. According to the first paragraph, malaria kills -

(1) ten percent of the world's population
(2) at least one million people each year
(3) most children under five in Africa
(4) everyone who gets the disease

)‫© כל הזכויות שמורות למרכז ארצי לבחינות ולהערכה (ע"ר‬
.‫ בלא אישור בכתב מהמרכז הארצי לבחינות ולהערכה‬- ‫ כולה או חלקים ממנה‬- ‫ או ללמדה‬,‫אין להעתיק או להפיץ בחינה זו או קטעים ממנה בכל צורה ובכל אמצעי‬