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Asia meets to
discuss possible bird flu pandemic |
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TOKYO (Reuters) - Asian countries and international organisations begin two days of talks in Tokyo on Thursday on how to contain a bird flu pandemic should the virus mutate into a form that can pass easily between people. The talks come at a time of growing fears about the H5N1 avian flu virus spreading to more countries after a spate of infections in Turkey, the first cases in humans outside East Asia.
At least 78 people are confirmed to have died of bird flu since late 2003, with the majority of cases in Southeast Asia and China. But it has killed at least two children in Turkey and infected more than a dozen people there in little more than a week, triggering a huge effort to contain the virus. |
"To fight against this avian influenza, you have to have a multi-faceted strategy," said Shigeru Omi, a top official with the World Health Organisation (WHO), which is co-hosting the event with Japan. Omi, WHO regional director for the Western Pacific, told Reuters on Wednesday that among steps likely to be discussed were ways to raise public awareness and strengthen surveillance. The WHO believes that a weak surveillance system was one of the factors behind the sudden outbreak of the disease in Turkey and sees early warning as vital in preventing a human pandemic. Scientists say the H5N1 virus remains relatively hard for people to catch and is spread almost exclusively through contact with birds, but there are fears it could mutate into a pandemic form which could kill millions of people. The U.N. health body will also present likely scenarios in case of an outbreak transmitted among people and discuss ways how countries in the region can help each other, including distribution of anti-viral drugs to affected nations. |
Omi also said support from richer nations for developing countries where most of the cases have emerged, was crucial. "It takes two to tango. Developing countries' effort alone is not sufficient. The developed world also has to provide support." Omi said no new financial pledges were likely at the Tokyo conference, which brings together some rich nations from outside of Asia including Britain and the United States, as well as aid bodies such as the Asian Development Bank and the World Bank. But he expected potential donor nations to come up with promises for fresh assistance at a meeting in Beijing next week. |
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