As many as across Vietnam have been identified as high risk areas for the outbreak of bird flu.(Photo: tapchibaohiemxahoi.vn)Hanoi (VNA) – As
many as 399 districts across Vietnam have been identified as
for the while another 314 districts are at low risk,
according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD).
According to the
national plan on avian influenza prevention and control from 2019 to 2025
approved recently by the Prime Minister, the high-risk districts are those that
fall into at least one of three categories. First, they are located in border
provinces of Quang Ninh, Lang Son, Cao Bang, Ha Giang, Lao Cai, Lai Chau, Dien Bien
and Son La.
Secondly, the
districts had bird flu outbreaks or cases of bird flu reported at least twice
in the last five years (2014-18) or within two years after they are removed
from the low-risk district list.
Thirdly, the
high-risk districts have more than 3,000 poultry farming households, over
100,000 poultry, over 100 duck farming households, or over 11,000 ducks.
Low-risk districts
are those that fall in at least one of following categories, including no bird
flu outbreak or bird flu virus reported in the last five years, their poultry
population is less than 100,000 poultry and less than 3,000 households raise
poultry in a district.
The low-risk
districts have disease-free poultry production chains.
Head of the
Epidemiology Division under the Department of Animal Health Nguyen Van Long
said on March 22 that the zoning which identifies high/low risk areas for bird
flu outbreak is one of 12 key measures Vietnam is taking to better prevent and
control bird flu until 2015.
Other measures
included disease detection, response and control, vaccination, animal
quarantine, and poultry slaughtering control. The country will also develop
more disease-free production zones and safe production chains in conformity
with recommendations of the World Organisation of Animal Health (OIE), Long
said.
Now, there are six
disease-free poultry production zones in Vietnam and 654 poultry farms are
certificated disease-free.
Deputy Minister of
Agriculture and Rural Development Phung Duc Tien said monitoring the bird flu
virus circulation effectively helps prevent and control bird flu.
The Department of
Animal Health cooperates with the Food and Agriculture Organisation and OIE to
take poultry samples for monitoring each year.
Tien called for
continued international assistance to Vietnam in dealing with diseases
including poultry diseases.
In Vietnam, the avian
influenza virus A/H5N1 in poultry was first reported in late 2003. At that
time, Vietnam was one of the first countries to declare an epidemic of this
virus and suffered heavy losses when more than 45 million poultry were culled between
2003 and 2006.
Between 2007 and
2013, about 200,000 poultry were killed because of bird flu each year. Between
2014 to March, 2019, about 90,000 poultry were killed because of bird flu each
year.
From 2004 to 2014,
127 people were infected with A/H5N1, of them, 64 victims died.
Since April, 2014, no
one in Vietnam has been infected with bird flu.
According to the
agriculture ministry, over 12 million households across the country raise
poultry, mostly on a small scale, which is said to cause difficulties in
applying synchronised disease-free production measures.-VNA
Source: VietnamPlus
