RWANDA IMPLEMENTS MEASURES TO COMBAT THREAT OF

UNCLAS KIGALI 000269

SIPDIS

AIDAC
SIPDIS

DEPT FOR AID/AFR/DP FOR MHARVEY, HLIGHTFOOT, ASEN, BDUSZA
AFR/EA FOR JBORNS, SMCCLURE, OCOLE
EGAT/AG/AM FOR DSOROKO
GH/HIDN FOR DCARROLL AND MTROSTLE
ECA/PHA FORVAMIRTHANAYAGAM AND CDAVIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUM SOCI TBIO WHO RW
SUBJECT: RWANDA IMPLEMENTS MEASURES TO COMBAT THREAT OF
AVIAN INFLUENZA


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SUMMARY
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1. With the recent outbreaks of Avian Influenza (AI) in
Africa, Rwanda is moving forward in its preparedness to
address the threat to both human and animal populations.
The Government of Rwanda (GOR) has revitalized an inter-
ministerial steering committee, originally formed in
November 2005. The inter-ministerial committee has drafted
and budgeted a National Action Plan that merges and
harmonizes the sectoral plans developed by the Ministries of
Health and Agriculture. The initial budget for
implementation of the action plan is about USD 500,000.


2. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has committed
approximately USD 10,000 to hire local consultants to assist
the GOR in finalizing the National Plan. FAO is also
planning on hiring an international consultant to work in
close collaboration with the local team and the GOR to
ensure incorporation of global best practices and lessons
learned. The GOR is also establishing a framework for donor
coordination under which interested parties can provide
support. In the meantime, USAID is continuing to engage
with GOR and other key partners to ensure efficient and
effective efforts.


3. A USG team met with the Minister of State (MoS) for
HIV/AIDS and Other Epidemics on March 7 to discuss the GOR's
plan regarding the AI threat in the region. The MoS
explained that the GOR has undertaken several initiatives,
including imposition of a ban on import of poultry products,
preparation of a National Action Plan, and appointment of an
inter-ministerial steering committee chaired by the Rwanda
Animal Resources Development Authority (RARDA).

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GOVERNMENT INITIATIVES
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4. The new inter-ministerial committee, originally formed in
November 2005, is headed by the Director of the RARDA and
comprised of the Ministry of Health (MINISANTE),the
Ministry of Agriculture (MINAGRI),the Ministry of Commerce
(MINICOM),Ministry of Land and Environment (MINITERE),the
Rwanda Bureau of Standards (RBS),the Rwandan Tourism Agency
(ORTPN),and the Rwandan Revenue Authority (RRA). At its
most recent meeting on March 10, the committee reviewed the
National Action Plan, in coordination with FAO consultants,
and each ministry appointed a focal point for AI. The plan
should be finalized shortly.



5. The GOR has some modest measures already in place to
address the AI threat, including a ban on importation of day-
old chickens (since June 2005) and poultry (since December
2005),surveillance/inspection staff at borders and control
points, and development of awareness-raising pamphlets in
the local Kinyarwanda language. Additional funds are
required to reproduce and distribute these pamphlets. As
part of the GOR's ongoing public outreach efforts, the head
of the inter-ministerial committee provided an interview to
Radio Rwanda to inform the public about precautionary
measures and reporting procedures for suspicious birds. The
30-minute interview was broadcast nationwide on March 14
during prime-time listening hours following the evening
news. This awareness-raising effort will be complemented by
public service announcements by a famous radio personality
in the coming weeks. As only 47% of the population has
access to radio, additional awareness efforts will be
required. These immediate measures offer short-term
solutions while the National Plan is being finalized to
guide a comprehensive and coordinated set of actions.

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U.S. MISSION ACTIVITIES RELATED TO AI
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6. USAID coordinated a field visit with RARDA to assess on-
the-ground activities. The USAID AI core team visited the
Northern Province on March 10 as it shares an important
international border with Uganda and has one of the highest
concentrations of poultry farms in Rwanda. The veterinarian


posted at the Rwandan-Ugandan border at Gatuna confirmed the
ban on importation of chickens and poultry products and the
collaboration with local authorities, including local police
forces as well as customs and immigration officials, to
reinforce this ban. However, he acknowledged his inability
to inspect every container and speculated that frozen
chickens were being smuggled across the border into Rwanda
under loads of frozen fish or other produce. He noted that
cross-border activities are extremely difficult to control
because of the porous border and proximity of established
communities on the border.


7. Community sensitization efforts are also under way with
talks being held with local groups and newly elected local
leaders. While in the Northern Province, the USAID team
took the opportunity to meet with the Bishop of Byumba to
engage the church to raise awareness among the large
Catholic population. The team updated the Bishop on
outbreaks in the region, the potential risks of an outbreak
in Rwanda, basic precautionary measures to disseminate to
congregations and other church groups, and reporting
measures established by the GOR. The Catholic Church
supports various initiatives, including raising chicken, and
has access to a large sector of the population. Given the
fellowship of over 60 percent of the country's population,
the Church could be instrumental in facilitating the
government's awareness campaign.


8. The Embassy Health Unit has procured Personal Protective
Equipment (PPE) for health care workers (HCWS) working in
DOS settings and for ICASS-eligible American employees and
their dependents who provide home care for the ill.
Moreover, the Embassy Management Unit has disseminated
management notices in English and Kinyarwanda, providing
general information on AI as well as emergency preparedness
advice. Additionally, the Health Unit and USAID gave
presentations and distributed pamphlets on AI at the monthly
American community Town Hall meeting. Attendees were urged
to disseminate the information to household staff,
neighbors, and local colleagues.


9. The GOR, in collaboration with donors, is finalizing the
National Plan and identifying priority activities for an
effective response to both the animal and human aspects of
the AI threat. USAID is closely monitoring the situation
and working with other donors such as the FAO. Moreover,
USAID, CDC, and the Embassy are working closely to leverage
CDC's regional activities for emergency measures and USAID
programs for in-country preparedness, and to mobilize the
highest level of the GOR. This coordinated USG response
maximizes the comparative advantages of each agency to
maximize the support provided to the GOR in responding to
the AI threat.


10. The USAID Mission has requested the support of David
Soroko from USAID/Washington's Bureau for Economic Growth,
Agriculture, and Trade (EGAT) to assist in the strategic
planning and to assess other donors' initiatives and
determine how they can be complemented to optimize the use
of limited resources and to put in place a comprehensive
preparedness plan.

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OTHER DONORS' ACTIVITIES
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11. FAO and World Health Organization(WHO) are playing a
lead role as the internationally agreed upon lead technical
agencies. The World Bank has been supporting the FAO in
this role, and, per agreements at the Beijing conference,
seeking to facilitate GOR and donor coordination issues.
FAO has been working closely with the GOR steering committee
on the National Plan. Over the past week, the WB provided
extensive comments and a comprehensive checklist of elements
that should be included in the National Plan, based on
existing best practices. FAO is working with the steering
committee to address and integrate the comments and
checklist. The revised draft of the National Plan should be
available shortly.


12. FAO has secured funds to support two national and one
international consultant to help finalize the National Plan.
Terms of Reference (TOR) have been drafted and the local


consultants have been selected. The WB has reviewed the TOR
and recommended that they be harmonized with the Rapid
Assessment TOR (agreed upon by FAO, WHO and WB following the
Beijing conference). The FAO team has agreed to update the
TOR.


13. At the GOR's request, the WB and WHO will support AI
interventions either within their existing portfolios or
through preparation of a new intervention. However,
additional support is required from other donors and the
latter approach will require some groundwork.


14. To facilitate institutional coordination, the GOR
national steering committee will also include: FAO, WHO, WB
and USAID. There will also be a technical donor working
group which will include a large constituency of donors and
international organizations, e.g. EU and DFID. The exact
composition and mechanism for this coordination will be
addressed at the next GOR/donor meeting.

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FINAL COMMENTS
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15. The response to the Avian Influenza threat has been slow
to start but progress has been made. Competing priorities,
such as foot-and-mouth disease and the ongoing food crisis,
have received more immediate focused attention. However,
the recent outbreaks of avian influenza in Africa have
highlighted the need for AI preparedness on the GOR's
agenda.


16. Considerable effort and resources are needed to build an
effective response to the AI threat: awareness-raising
activities are just starting; surveillance efforts will have
to overcome communication, infrastructure, and human
resource limitations; and regional laboratories will have to
be used to compensate for inadequate local laboratory
facilities. A test of the National Plan is a high priority
to ensure the effectiveness of operational procedures for
surveillance and control, including the cooperation of
airlines and customs authorities for rapid specimen
transportation and testing. Moreover, as in most African
countries, deeply rooted and complex socio-economic norms
will have to be overcome in order to effectively prevent,
detect, and control an AI outbreak.
ARIETTI