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Vietnam, which has reported two bird flu fatalities since the first of the year (the article only mentions 1), now is battling outbreaks in poultry in 11 provinces.
The MOA (Minister of Agriculture) is calling for stricter controls in an attempt to contain the outbreak.
Vietnam is also seeing a resurgence in other animal diseases, prompting a call for better checkpoints on their borders.
On February 8th of this year, ProMED Mail reported.
[There have been 5 provinces reporting foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) within the last 21 days in Viet Nam. They include Son La, Long An, Kon Tum, Hoa Binh, and Quang Binh provinces.
Additionally, there have been multiple reports of Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS) in Quang Ninh and Quang Nam provinces.
Agriculture ministry urges bird flu control
Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Cao Duc Phat Thursday asked ministries, sectors and localities to apply strict bird flu controls next month.
The ministry has instructed relevant agencies to build a series of new check-points along Vietnam’s borders to prevent animal diseases from entering the country, Phat said at a meeting held in Hanoi, chaired by Standing Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Sinh Hung.
The ministry also suggested that provinces, which lack vaccines, should apply to the Department of Animal Health today for additional supplies, Phat said.
So far this year, 13 provinces and cities have been badly hit by bird flu, with a total of more than 52,000 fowl culled, equalling nearly half of last year’s total, department head Bui Quang Anh said at the meeting.
Currently, 11 bird flu-hit localities still haven’t controlled the epidemic, he said.
Over the past two months, bird flu has also infected three people in the country, killing one of them, Anh said.
