Experts Warn Africa Will Be Next Target for Avian Influenza
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Migratory Birds Threaten to Spread Avian Influenza in Africa |
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) previously indicated that migratory birds could bring avian influenza to East Africa and the Middle East within weeks. An article in Nature magazine warned that the economic and health consequences in these regions could be even worse than those experienced in Southeast Asia once the avian influenza outbreak occurs.
Health officials in Kenya have announced that the country launched an avian influenza alert campaign last week. One official stated, “We have increased disease surveillance to prepare for the influenza virus if it appears.”
Uganda’s Minister of Animal Resources and Disease Prevention, William Olaho, also stated, “Things are deteriorating, and we have halted the import of all poultry and poultry products until the situation returns to normal.”
Experts believe that rural residents around the lakes of the East African Rift Valley, who primarily rely on poultry farming, could be the most severely affected. The impact on Africa will be markedly different from that in Europe, as the loss of poultry will significantly affect the livelihoods of people in this region.
Each new avian influenza outbreak increases the potential for mutations of the H5N1 virus, making it easier to transmit from human to human and potentially leading to a pandemic. If this occurs, experts predict that between 2 million and 50 million people could die worldwide.
Kenyan poultry specialists, along with scientists from the United States and Egypt, will conduct tests on migratory birds in the Rift Valley tomorrow, October 28, to check for the presence of the H5N1 virus. Muchane Muchai, director of the National Museum of Kenya, stated, “Researchers will continue to monitor the bird populations along their migratory routes until March.”
East African countries are set to meet next month in Rwanda to plan a regional response to avian influenza.
TUONG VY (According to BBC, Reuters)
