VIETNAM - AVIAN INFLUENZA UPDATE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 HANOI 000073

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SUBJECT: VIETNAM - AVIAN INFLUENZA UPDATE


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SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED

REF: A) HO CHI MINH 10 B) 06 HCMC 1497 AND PREVIOUS


1. (SBU) Summary. There have been no reported H5N1 human avian
influenza (AI) cases in Vietnam this year and none reported in 2006.
According to the Government of Vietnam (GVN),Kien Giang province
in the Mekong Delta has become the fourth province to experience to
an AI poultry outbreak. Two flocks of ducks in two separate
districts of Kien Giang Province perished over the weekend, with all
70 ducks reportedly tested positive for H5N1. The GVN, with close
support from international experts from FAO and WHO, are closely
monitoring the situation and, while concerned that future outbreaks
may occur, believe that they have a handle on the poultry outbreaks
in the south. End Summary.


2. (U) There have been no confirmed H5N1 AI human cases in Vietnam
this year and none reported in 2006.

Poultry Outbreaks Continue in Mekong Delta Provinces
-------------- --------------


3. (SBU) According to Thanh Nhien News dated January 9, Kien Giang
province in the Mekong Delta has become the fourth Vietnamese
province to report an AI poultry outbreak. According to local
animal health officials, 70 ducks in two flocks from Go Quao and
Vinh Thuan districts died on Saturday and Sunday. Subsequently, all
birds tested positive for H5N1. Local authorities have slaughtered
approximately 1,800 ducks and have quarantined and sterilized
infected sites in the two districts.
Since December 11, 2006, AI outbreaks have been officially reported
in 41 communes in 17 districts of Ca Mau, Bac Lieu, Hau Giang and
Kien Giang provinces and nearly 45,000 poultry have been culled.
(NOTE: On January 11, a senior official in the Ministry of
Agriculture and Rural Development's (MARD) Department of Animal
Health confirmed to Health Attache that the poultry die-off in Can
Tho Province, as reported -- reftel A, have tested negative for
H5N1. END NOTE)

GVN Aware Of Virus Circulating Among Unvaccinated Poultry
-------------- --------------


4. (U) At a meeting of the National Steering Committee on Avian Flu
Control in Hanoi on January 10, Vice Minister of Agriculture and
Rural Development Bui Ba Bong warned officials and the press that
the spread of AI in poultry remains an imminent threat to all
localities, especially in the Mekong delta but also in central and
northern regions. After the meeting, Vice Minister Bong stated to
Vietnam News that the GVN is dispatching 11 inspection teams
throughout the country to ensure prevention activities such as
vaccinations and quarantines are conducted properly. In addition,
the Ministry of Health has reportedly established five mobile
emergency task forces to support localities in the prevention and
treatment of possible human infections.


5. (U) State media have cited reports by the Animal Health Bureau
Region Number 7 and the Center for Animal Health Diagnosis that
samples from unvaccinated ducks in Dong Thap, Bac Lieu and Vinh Phuc
Provinces in the south and Ninh Binh and Ha Nam Provinces in the
north have also tested positive for H5N1 virus. State media also
reported that vaccination rates are as low as 50 percent in some
Mekong Delta provinces and as low as 39 percent in central provinces
such as Quang Ngai and Quang Nam. Thanh Nhien news further reported
poultry deaths in Dai Loc District of Quang Nam Province. Samples
were not collected from those birds since breeders had quickly

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burned and buried the carcasses.

Assessment of High Risk Threats
--------------


6. (SBU) At a USG partners meeting held January 9 at USAID Hanoi
office, Dr. Jeffrey Gilbert, Avian Influenza Senior Technical
Coordinator of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO),
expressed hope that Vietnam is "past the peak" of the recent flurry
of outbreaks, which occurred primarily in illegally hatched duck
flocks that were not vaccinated or monitored by local authorities.
Regarding procedure, samples that have tested positive by the animal
health regional laboratory in Can Tho are confirmed by the HCMC
Pasteur Institute and then some material is sent via FAO
coordination to a reference laboratory in Australia for sequencing.


7. (SBU) Dr. Gilbert further noted that the GVN is concerned that
other provinces, particularly the central provinces of Thanh Hoa,
Quang Binh and Quang Nam pose a high risk for AI outbreaks in
poultry. While these areas remain outbreak-free, the heightened
concern stems from earlier surveys that found significant levels of
H5N1 genetic materials in poultry flocks in these areas. For
example, officials have cited that 73 percent of 30 unvaccinated
poultry samples collected in Quang Nam Province in December 2006
tested positive for H5N1 virus, which is alarming considering that
in provinces such as Quang Nam, 60 percent or more of poultry flocks
remain unvaccinated. Another risk factor that concerns officials is
the highly organized and profuse trafficking of live poultry across
the border from China, which supplies not only border provinces but
the large metropolitan cities.


8. (SBU) Dr. Mark Simmerman, a CDC epidemiologist seconded to the
World Health Organization office in Hanoi, provided a brief update
on suspect human AI cases. He noted that all four members of the
family in the Mekong Delta, who tested negative by throat swab test,
recovered quickly and did not require mechanical breathing support.
Dr. Simmerman also noted that the media attention on AI may have
contributed to the increased number of cases (20-30 cases per day)
referred for testing in northern Vietnam, all of which have tested
negative and have not garnered media attention.

USG IEC Activities
--------------


9. (SBU) On January 9, a monthly USG partners meeting was held at
USAID Hanoi office that was attended by twenty persons, including
personnel from the Embassy, implementing partners, FAO and WHO.
After a brief update on AI outbreaks (see above),representatives of
various USG-funded projects shared with the group their work on
Information, Education and Communications (IEC) activities. These
include TV spots created by Academy for Educational Development
(AED) that focus on village/community spirit and not disrupting
village harmony through bad poultry practices. CARE and Abt
Associates have developed posters and booklets that target best
practices for market and food stall workers. Meanwhile, Agronomes &
Veterinaires Sans Frontieres (AVSF) is developing two new training
manuals, one on epidemiology and the other on diagnosis of AI in
poultry, and Kenan Institute sub-grantees Catholic Relief Services
(CRS) and Australian Foundation for the Peoples of Asia and the
Pacific Limited (AFAP) will be developing public-private
partnerships with Vietnamese companies in Thanh Hoa, Nghe An and Hoa
Binh provinces of northern Vietnam to develop improved bio-security
standards.


10. (SBU) COMMENT: The GVN, with close support from international

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experts from FAO and WHO, are closely monitoring the situation and,
while concerned that future outbreaks may occur, believe that they
have a handle on the poultry outbreaks in the south. The central
government appears to be doing everything within their power to
contain the spread of poultry outbreaks that are occurring in
unvaccinated poultry flocks, including reprimanding istrict-leve
officials, supplying needed technical and finanial support to
outbreak districts and preventingfuture outbreaks in poultry by
ordering all minisries and provinces to maintain vigilance with
reards to farm hygiene, strict enforcement of the ba on live
poultry markets and early reporting of ie-off incidents. Post has
encouraged the WHO ad FAO to conduct a joint field assessment in
the ekong Delta, which is currently underway after som
deliberation of the GVN, and the HHS Health Attche has reached out
to national and internationa health organizations with offers of
technical spport if needed. END COMMENT.

MARINE