February 21, 2007

Egypt to set up insurance fund for poultry industry

Egypt would set up an insurance fund to protect its poultry industry from diseases such as bird flu, Minister of Agriculture, Amin Abaza said at a bird flu conference in the country last week.

A joint government-private sector task force would develop a strategy to fight the spread of the Avian Flu virus and protect the poultry industry, he said.

The task force would develop a database to keep track of large and small producers and organize the implementation of safety standards.

The government would also work to shift abattoirs to areas outside the city areas and ban live-bird trading.

Although the government has assured a smooth transition from a private-unregulated industry to a more systematic, capital-intensive one, analysts fear such a shift would be met with fierce opposition as it is expected to displace many workers in the industry.