May 8, 2006

APEC ministers endorse regional bird flu plan

Agriculture and health ministers from the Asia-Pacific region Friday (May 5) endorsed a plan for regional cooperation to stamp out bird flu and prepare for a potential flu pandemic.

In a speech at the opening of an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting in central Vietnam, the host nation's Deputy Prime Minister Vu Khoan said the group's 21 member nations need to work closely together to battle the deadly H5N1 bird flu virus.

"At present, although the bird flu epidemic has been pushed back, the danger of recurrence is still there," he said. Vietnam, once the centre of bird flu outbreaks, has reported no cases since December.

"We therefore look to enhancing cooperation with APEC economies to not only roll back but also wipe out the epidemic, especially to prevent the transmission from human to human," he said.

The plan calls to reform backyard farming practices. Poor people across South-east Asia commonly raise their own poultry.

On Saturday, delegates attending the conference also explored a chicken farm in central Vietnam for a firsthand look at how hygiene is maintained.

The farm in Hoa Quy village in the coastal town of Danang had about 7,000 chickens, all of which had been vaccinated. Laying hens were kept in cages in an enclosed coop sprayed with disinfectant.

APEC member countries also plan to conduct a tabletop mock pandemic exercise next month to test the region's preparedness.