There is little likelihood that, because of intensified
vaccination efforts, there will be a major bird flu outbreak in
China this year, according to Jia Youling, chief of the Veterinary
Bureau under the Ministry of Agriculture, yesterday.
But since there is a chance that vaccines might be improperly
administered in courtyards and farms in some remote areas, and as
migratory birds fly north to their summer nesting grounds, the
disease is still a threat, Jia cautioned.
"As of last Wednesday, 4.75 billion vaccines had been used
throughout the country, and poultry in most regions are expected to
have been vaccinated by the end of this month," he told
reporters.
On the country's expertise in fighting bird flu, Jia said that
it was a combination of culling and vaccination that helped bring
the disease under control.
Last week, when United Nations coordinator for avian influenza
David Nabarro visited China to make a note of what the country had
done, he urged China to contribute its expertise and information to
the global bird flu fight.
China has coordinated the world's biggest vaccination campaign
and slaughtered 22.849 million poultry since 2005, according to
ministry sources.
As a result, it stamped out all 35 outbreaks of the deadly H5N1
virus last year. No new cases have been reported in the last month
and a half, Jia added.
He said that the ministry has been actively cooperating with
international organizations in the control of the spread of bird
flu, and has invited at least 30 experts from the World Health
Organization and the UN Food and Agricultural Organization to visit
epidemic sites and laboratories in China.
(China Daily April 11, 2006)