Direction: Read the passage carefully and choose the correct answer to each…
2024
Direction: Read the passage carefully and choose the correct answer to each question out of the four alternatives and fill in the blanks
In September 2015, the leaders of 193 countries agreed to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – the most (1)….plan ever to promote human development – by 2030. Nearly two years into the process, there are plenty of reasons for concern: the amount of financing raised so far is unlikely to be sufficient, and not all countries have (2)….data to measure progress on the ground. It is enough to test even the most diehard (3)….But there is still plenty of reason for hope. I recently visited Colombia, which, at long last, is leaving behind its decades-long civil conflict with the (4)….Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and setting itself up for SDG success. In any country, achieving the SDGs will require government, business, aid agencies, multilateral banks, and civil society to work together, adopt flexible approaches, share knowledge, measure progress effectively, and recognize that the various targets are interconnected. Colombia seems to understand this, and is (5)….an (6)…. approach that leverages the strengths of each actor. Start with government. According to Colombia’s finance minister, Mauricio Cárdenas Santamaría, the country is localizing the SDGs through the planning department, using the SDG framework to guide reforms relating to the implementation of the peace agreement with the FARC, OECD (7)…., the National Development Plan, and the Paris climate agreement. Meanwhile, Cárdenas points out, Colombia’s policymakers are taking care to highlight the benefits of these efforts – in areas ranging from health care and education to employment – for the public. They recognize that a top-down approach will not work: to achieve the SDGs, all levels of the government, economy, and society must feel connected to the goals, understanding the (8)….impact that achieving them will have.To get business on board, the Bogotá Chamber of Commerce, led by Monica de Greiff, is raising awareness of the SDGs among its 640,000 members and providing skills training in sectors like construction and health care. The aim is to achieve the SDGs’ targets while increasing the economy’s overall competitiveness. The good news is that, as Bruce MacMaster of the Bogotá-based business advocacy and think tank ANDI noted, businesses have a strong incentive to (9)….the gains of the peace process, especially in remote areas that have (10)….been cut off from government services. And, indeed, in Medellín, once the illicit drug capital of the world, the leaders of small and large businesses with whom I met are already integrating the SDGs into their business plans and supply chains.
Find the appropriate word in case 7
- A.
accession
- B.
torpor
- C.
withdrawal
- D.
distinguish
Attempted by 2 students.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A
Concept: "Accession" refers to the formal act of joining, entering into, or becoming a party to an agreement, treaty, or organisation. It is used as a noun for the process or event of joining, distinct from near-synonyms that describe leaving (withdrawal), a state of inactivity (torpor), or the verb "to distinguish".
Application: The sentence lists Colombia's ongoing reform initiatives in parallel: "the implementation of the peace agreement with the FARC, OECD (7)…., the National Development Plan, and the Paris climate agreement." Each item in this list is a distinct policy, agreement, or process that Colombia is engaged with. Since Colombia was in the process of joining the OECD (formally acceding to it), the noun that completes "OECD ___" in parallel with the other listed items must denote "the act of joining" — that is "accession". Filling the blank gives "OECD accession", consistent with the real-world context of Colombia's OECD accession process, completed in 2020.
Cross-check: Grammatically, the blank must be a noun, to match "the peace agreement", "the National Development Plan", and "the Paris climate agreement" — all noun phrases. "Distinguish" is a verb, so it is ruled out immediately by part of speech alone. Substituting "accession" preserves both the grammar and the sense of Colombia moving toward international integration, matching the passage's overall optimistic tone about Colombia's progress.
Torpor: means lethargy or sluggish inactivity — has no connection to joining an international organisation, and does not fit the noun-phrase list of reform initiatives.
Withdrawal: means the act of leaving or exiting — the opposite of what the passage describes (Colombia integrating with international frameworks, not exiting them).
Distinguish: is a verb, not a noun, so it cannot grammatically complete the list alongside "the National Development Plan" and "the Paris climate agreement".