APRIL 24 NIGERIA AVIAN FLU UPDATE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ABUJA 000931

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

USDA FOR FAS/OA, FAS/DLP, FAS/ICD AND FAS/ITP
USDA ALSO FOR APHIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: TBIO KFLU EAID AMED EAGR NI AVIANFLU
SUBJECT: APRIL 24 NIGERIA AVIAN FLU UPDATE

REF: ABUJA 659

1. (SBU) Summary. The GON is losing its sense of urgency on
AI. The GON appears to be moving toward adopting the line
that Nigeria's AI crisis is more or less over. Lack of
reporting on new outbreaks, previously attributable to weak
surveillance, more recently appears also to be due to
deliberate suppression of new information concerning
outbreaks, be various federal and state level officials.
The GON's AI public-education campaign has faded away and
needs reinvigoration. AI has spread to 13 of Nigeria's 36
states and to the Federal Capital Territory. At least 758
farms/premises have been affected, and of poultry on
affected farms, 288,662 died of AI and 414,403 were culled.
Nigeria's upcoming rainy season, with its wetter and cooler
climate, could lead to a resurgence of AI, because the virus
fares worst in the country's current hot and dry weather.
End summary.


2. (SBU) The Government of Nigeria (GON) is losing its sense
of urgency on the avian influenza (AI). Nigeria's AI Crisis
Management Center last issued a "news bulletin" on April 4.
The GON's AI public-education campaign has faded away and
needs reinvigoration. The GON appears to be moving toward
adopting the line that Nigeria's AI crisis is more or less
over. Some officials have declared that have been no new
outbreaks in recent weeks. In fact, new outbreaks Mission
personnel have heard of new outbreaks in Kano, Plateau and
Bauchi states. In a visit to the Veterinary Lab in Vom, the
Ag Attache got the impression that lab staff were under
pressure to delay or with hold the release of information on
recent test results. No results have been reported for a
number of suspected outbreaks. The consensus is that small
farmers are not reporting outbreaks, but eat any sick or
dying birds. It may be true that the number of outbreaks has
dropped off in recent weeks. Unofficial vaccination
probably has reduced outbreaks in commercial flocks while
the recent very hot dry weather is unfavorable to the spread
of the virus. With the arrival late last weeks of the rainy
season, with its wetter and cooler climate, there could be a
resurgence of AI outbreaks.


3. (U) As currently reported, AI has spread to 13 of
Nigeria's 36 states and to the Federal Capital Territory.
At least 758 farms/premises have been affected in 30 local-
government areas (LGAs),and culling was carried out in 33
LGAs. As of April 11, of chickens, ostriches, ducks,
pigeons, turkeys, and geese on affected farms, 288,662 died
of AI and 414,403 were culled, according to the United
Nations/Nigeria. The GON so far has paid N107,639,866
(about USD 841,000) in compensation to poultry farmers. But
according to the GON, these payments largely have gone to
big commercial poultry farmers (58 farmers in Kano State, 59
farmers in Kaduna State, and 13 farmers in Plateau State).


4. (U) The agricultural attache led on April 12 a video
conference on bird vaccinations with the U.S. Department of
Agriculture/Washington and GON, UN, and U.S. Mission
officials in Abuja. The group heard from top U.S.
vaccination experts, both government and private, about the
types of vaccines available, as well as case studies of
countries that used bird vaccine and the lessons learned.
The conference's objective was to encourage the GON to
employ vaccination as one of the tools to combat the spread
of AI. The GON, however, had valid concerns about poultry
inoculations and later decided not to use bird vaccine.
Nigerian commercial poultry farmers' current widespread but
unapproved bird inoculations will render surveillance of AI
more difficult, because of the vaccine's unmonitored
presence in poultry.


5. (U) Two USAID/Nigeria officers and an Abuja economic
officer attended the USAID Africa-wide avian flu conference
in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, on April 4-6. They sought to
convey to other attendees the difficulties Nigeria has
encountered so far in combating AI.


6. (SBU) The donor group under UN leadership has prepared a
document to look at the first three months of AI in Nigeria
and to provide recommendations for action in the next three
months. A joint UN/USAID/CDC delegation plans to meet with
the Ministers of Agriculture, Health and Information to
raise concerns about fading GON focus on the AI problem.
Among other things, USAID and the UN are working on a
proposal for a joint GON/Donor operation center to manage
the response to the AI epidemic and involve the states more
directly in the response.
FUREY