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Reading Comprehension Passage 1 Read The Passage Below and Answer The Questions That Follow

The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an independent international organization that holds an annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland to discuss pressing global issues. In 2013, Bill Gates spoke at the WEF meeting about his charitable foundation's work funding vaccines and drugs to eradicate diseases like malaria. He also discussed the foundation's efforts to improve access to affordable, quality education through technology like online learning materials.

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77 views3 pages

Reading Comprehension Passage 1 Read The Passage Below and Answer The Questions That Follow

The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an independent international organization that holds an annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland to discuss pressing global issues. In 2013, Bill Gates spoke at the WEF meeting about his charitable foundation's work funding vaccines and drugs to eradicate diseases like malaria. He also discussed the foundation's efforts to improve access to affordable, quality education through technology like online learning materials.

Uploaded by

adiG48 AtdiG48
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Reading Comprehension Passage 1

Read the passage below and answer the questions that follow.

The World Economic Forum (WEF) is a Swiss non-profit organisation, based in Cologny,
Geneva. It is an independent international organisation committed to improving the state of
the world by engaging business, political, academic and other leaders of society to shape
global, regional and industry agendas. The forum is best known for its annual meeting at
Davos, a mountain resort in Graubünden, in the eastern Alps region of Switzerland. The
meeting brings together some 2,500 top business leaders, international political leaders,
selected intellectuals and journalists to discuss the most pressing issues facing the world,
including health, education and the environment.

II

One of the speakers at Davos 2013 was Bill Gates, the founder of Microsoft. Although most
people are aware of Mr. Gates’ involvement with Microsoft, fewer realise that along with his
wife Belinda he heads a charitable foundation that donates billions of dollars to various
charities annually. The charity is officially known as the Bill and Belinda Gates Foundation,
and it is believed that between 1994, when the foundation was established and 2013, Bill
Gates gave $ 28 billion of his own money to the foundation, in addition to raising countless
billions more.

III

Addressing the forum about deadly diseases such as malaria, tuberculosis and HIV that afflict
the world’s poorest the most, Gates focused particularly on children. “Until we treat the
health of a poor child as being as important as the health of a rich child, we still have work to
do,” he said. Gates also pointed out that although deaths from malaria have fallen, there were
still not tools available to wipe out the disease completely. In view of this, he reported how
the Bill and Belinda Gates Foundation is funding drug and vaccine companies so that they
may one day produce a vaccine against malaria which will totally eradicate the disease.
“Someday malaria will become a disease like polio and smallpox that won’t be killing
anyone!” Gates declared.

IV

The Microsoft founder also reminded the forum that although health was a particular interest
of his charity, it was not its only one. He stated that his foundation was additionally
concentrating on improving access to quality education at a lower cost. He argued that
technology and applying the internet revolution to more areas would play a big role in
making education more widely available and affordable. In practical terms, this might mean
providing access to online lectures and learning materials, he said.
V

In response to a question about Microsoft, Gates said that the computer giant had a lot of
exciting things going on related mainly to Windows 8 improvements and the Surface tablet.
He did not address what the media had reported as increasing consumer dissatisfaction with
the Windows 8 operating system.

I The reading passage has five paragraphs, I-V. From the following headings 1-5
choose a suitable title for each paragraph. The first one has been done for you.

Heading Paragraph

The WEF and its objectives A


Bill Gates’ vision for the future
Bill Gates’ work outside the computer giant
Another concern of the Bill and Belinda Gates’
Foundation
The current situation at Microsoft
II Write whether the following statements are true, false or not given.

5. The World Economic Forum is controlled by the Swiss government.

6. Bill Gates established Microsoft.

7. More business leaders than political leaders or intellectuals attend the forum in Davos.

8. Bill Gates does not operate his charity on his own.

9. The Microsoft founder believes polio and smallpox are no longer fatal.

10. Bill and Belinda Gates Foundation is only concerned about poverty in Africa.

III Complete the text below with words from the passage. Choose NO MORE THAN
ONE WORD from the passage for each answer.

Each year at Davos in Switzerland the WEF talks about urgent world 11.
____________related to the environment,education and health. Among the 12.
____________ at the WEF meeting in 2013 was Bill Gates, who addressed the forum about a
number of lethal 13. ____________.In addition to trying to eradicate illnesses such as
malaria, Gates reported that his charity was 14. ___________on access to cheaper, quality
education. Gates said that this might involve giving people 15. __________ to lectures via the
internet.

IV. Write in your own words the function of the World Economic Forum

V. According to the passage, what is Bill Gates’ view on improving access to education?

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