TAJIKISTAN POULTRY BAN CONFUSION; AVIAN FLU: ADDRESSING

UNCLAS DUSHANBE 001981 SIPDIS STATE FOR EUR/CACEN, SA E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECON ETRD EAGR EAID PREL TBIO SENV TI USTR SUBJECT: TAJIKISTAN POULTRY BAN CONFUSION; AVIAN FLU: ADDRESSING AI-RELATED IMPORT RESTRICTIONS ON POULTRY- STATE 216147 REF: STATE 216147 ¶1. Although the government of Tajikistan officially issued poultry bans on ten countries, customs inspectors are unaware of the new regulations. Mahmadnazar Tashrifov, Senior Inspector of the Department of Veterinary Service reported that to date, the department has authorized three resolutions banning poultry products. In April, it banned imports of meat products including poultry from Afghanistan and China because they had reported cases of foot-and-mouth disease. August 5, Tajikistan banned imports of poultry from Russia and Kazakhstan, and October 25 it banned poultry products from China, Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, Mongolia, Croatia, and Turkey. Confirmed cases of Avian Flu motivated the State Veterinary Inspection to enact these bans. The bans will be in place until the State Veterinary Inspection decides to lift them. Tashrifov could not predict when that would be. ¶2. In a meeting December 7, PolOff informed Ibrokhim Mirzoev, Deputy Head of the Customs Department of the Ministry of State Revenue and Duties of the ten bans in place. Mirzoev said he was unaware and has received no instruction from the Ministry of Agriculture to implement the bans. Customs has taken stringent measures to prevent Avian Flu from entering the country. Mirzoev assured that all imported poultry is tested for the H5N1 virus in Tajik laboratories before it is permitted on the market. Tajikistan inspects and tests all poultry, even if it has been certified clear of H5N1 by the exporter. Although customs does inspect imported poultry, they still allow imports from countries on the banned list such as Russia, Kazakhstan and China. ¶3. Overall, Tajikistan imported 20% less poultry products compared to last year. This gap has been filled by a 40% increase in domestic poultry production. The government implemented a quarantine on state poultry farms and has made a concerted effort to grow their own poultry stock. The price of poultry products has not markedly changed. This year, Tajikistan imported $480,000 worth of poultry meat from the United States, placing the United States third after Lithuania and the United Arab Emirates as the leading vendors of poultry to Tajikistan. Tashrifov maintains Tajikistan will continue to import more poultry from the United States. ¶4. Comment: Tajikistan's young government is becoming more professional, so it was surprising that the Head of Customs would be unaware of the government's recent decrees. It would not be surprising, given the level of corruption, if importers found ways around the ban. END COMMENT HOAGLAND NNNN