VIETNAM: AVIAN INFLUENZA ASSISTANCE NEEDS

UNCLAS HANOI 000537 SIPDIS SENSITIVE STATE FOR EAP/BCLTV, OES, E AND G STATE PASS USAID-WALTER NORTH, DAA STATE PASS HHS FOR OGHA/STEIGER BANGKOK FOR USAID-TIM BEANS USDA FOR APHIS ADMINISTRATOR DEHAVEN AND DR. JOSEPH ANNELLI, APHIS DOD FOR OSD/ISA/AP FOR LEW STERN FROM THE AMBASSADOR E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAID ECON VM ESCI SUBJECT: VIETNAM: AVIAN INFLUENZA ASSISTANCE NEEDS REF: A) Hanoi 467 B) Hanoi 502 ¶1. (SBU) Post has been sending the Department regular reporting cables (Ref A) on the avian influenza (AI) situation in Vietnam. While life is normal on the streets of Vietnam, should the increasingly pessimistic forecasts of the World Health Organization come true, Vietnam and her neighboring countries could face a significant pandemic with a staggering loss of life. ¶2. (SBU) The Embassy has already taken a number of planning steps. An interagency working group is tracking the situation. HHS staff has been involved with the rest of the international health community and attended and reported on the AI meeting in Ho Chi Minh City last week (Ref B). Work on an Embassy action plan has already begun in case the current outbreak starts shifting towards a pandemic. In short, the situation here is calm, and the Embassy is doing what it should. As the World Health Organization points out, though, there is the potential of a significant disaster. ¶3. (SBU) With that in mind, we would urge that agencies in Washington have this as high on their individual list of priorities as we do. Since policy level interagency discussions are undoubtedly underway in Washington, we would appreciate receiving an update on those meetings. It would be useful for those discussions also to include an early consensus on what our respective agencies should do now to help prevent the current situation from becoming an epidemic. ¶4. (SBU) In Vietnam, both the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) and the Ministry of Health (MOH) are doing what they can with limited resources. What they now require more of are veterinarians, technicians and laboratory equipment. These are needed to improve quickly the reach and quality of the agricultural surveillance systems and the supporting laboratory testing capacity. FAO is coordinating support to MARD while WHO is assisting MOH. Other countries here are already beginning to work to coordinate assistance. ¶5. (SBU) On February 21, MARD submitted through FAO to the donors a list of requests for specific types of assistance. This list includes a trust fund for in- kind donations as well as a call for various experts to assist in country in areas such as prevention and detection and poultry industry restructuring. Post is transmitting the MARD request through FAO to EAP/BCLTV. MOH has not yet submitted a specific list to WHO and the donors. Nonetheless, HHS has already been providing support. Additional U.S. support from other agencies coordinated through the country team would be welcome, appreciated and useful. MARINE NNNN