和其他所有組織與企業一樣，國際扶輪在過去1年半來也為經濟衰退所苦。在1990年代，我們投資的高收益讓國際扶輪得以擴展其服務範圍。舉例來說，國際扶輪在1998年捐獻1,000萬美元給「兒童機會獎助金」計劃，但是今天經濟局勢十分不穩定，我們必須在沒有縮減對扶輪社員之服務的前提下，設法控制支出，刪減開支。

Like every other organization and business, Rotary International has suffered economic setbacks during the past 18 months. In the 1990s, high income from our investments enabled RI to expand its reach. For example, RI contributed US$10 million in 1998 to help create the Children's Opportunities Grants program. In today's uncertain economic climate, we must instead look for ways to control expenses and cut costs without reducing service to Rotarians. 

因此，我們開始設法充分利用可使用的資源，便將某些業務轉移給國際辦事處負責。比方說，為了利用印度資訊業大量的技術勞工，我們在新德里辦事處網羅資訊科技人才。這讓我們得以延長電腦在一天的開機時間，並提供扶輪社員更好的服務。

To that end, we began to look for ways to make the most of all available resources, which has resulted in a shift of some business activities to our international offices. For instance, to benefit from India's huge pool of highly skilled workers in the information technology field, we are building up the IT staff in our New Delhi office. This allows us to keep our computers running more hours in the day and provide better service to Rotarians. 

我們也利用該國際辦事處的印度辦事員來處理「公式名錄」的資料，來取代世界總部的臨時僱員。我們也把一些印刷業務外包出國─到印度、日本、和瑞士─以降低運貨成本。

We are also employing Indian staff in the international office to handle data processing for the Official Directory, replacing temporary help at World Headquarters. And we have taken some of our printing business abroad - to India, Japan, and Switzerland - in an effort to reduce shipping charges. 

在不斷研究如何使扶輪每塊美元、日元、盧比、或歐元發揮最大效用的同時，我們也將設法使用較便宜的通訊方式。視訊會議讓機票與飯店住宿費用大有刪減的可能，而同樣能夠達到讓扶輪社員共聚一堂的目的。目前，我們經常與國際辦事處的辦事員舉行視訊會議。在我們全力「省錢不省服務」之際，我們希望增加使用這種非常有效的「集會」工具。

While continuing to investigate where we can get the best value for our Rotary dollar, yen, rupee, or euro, we will also explore the use of less expensive methods of communication. Videoconferencing offers enormous possibilities for curtailing airfare and hotel costs, while still allowing us to bring Rotarians together from all parts of the world. Currently, we are holding regular videoconferences with staff in our international offices. We hope to expand RI's use of this very effective meeting tool as part of our overall efforts to contain costs without decreasing service. 

秘書長

Ed Futa