Govt to allocate Rp 50b to help poultry farmers

Govt to allocate Rp 50b to help poultry farmers

Eva C. Komandjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The government has allocated Rp 50 billion (US$5.9 million) in
compensation for poultry farmers following the President's order
to cull chickens infected with bird flu, according to the
Minister of People's Welfare Jusuf Kalla on Sunday.

The announcement of compensation was coupled with Kalla's
threat to "jail" farmers who failed to follow the order issued by
President Megawati Soekarnoputri last week.

Antara reported that each poultry farmer would get a package
of chicks and feedstock worth some Rp 5,000. The package would be
distributed to farmers in 11 provinces affected by the outbreak
across the country. Last month the government admitted that,
since last year, bird flu had killed 40 percent of the 4.7
million chickens across the country. There has been no proof of
the possible existence of a subtype of the virus which could
spread to humans.

On Sunday the WHO's worst fears may have materialized as it
said it suspected the first case of human-to-human transmission
in Vietnam. Two girls died after the death of their brother from
bird flu, or avian influenza.

In Denpasar, head of the Tabanan regency Animal Husbandry
Agency, I Gusti Putu Suandi, said that government banks would
provide loans to help poultry farmers resume their business after
the outbreak.

An official of the Jakarta Animal Husbandry Agency said no
steps had been taken by the government to carry out the cull as
the guidelines had only been completed on Friday. Further
discussion on the guidelines would be held on Tuesday.

The government has also ordered the vaccination of healthy
chickens. The decision to carry out vaccinations and a selective
cull -- instead of a mass cull as urged by the World Health
Organization -- has led to criticism among veterinarians who said
the measures would not be entirely effective.

WHO says a mass cull would prevent the further establishment
of the bird flu virus in the country's poultry population.
Indonesia's chicken population was last estimated at 135 million.

However, a pathology expert from the Bogor Institute of
Agriculture, Ekowati Handayani said that vaccinations could be
the best option.

"We have to compare our country's situation with other
countries before deciding on what steps we should take to prevent
the disease from spreading," Ekowati told The Jakarta Post.

She said that in other countries, such as in Thailand and
Vietnam, poultry farms were more organized. The geographical
sizes of the countries made it easier to carry out a mass cull.

Meanwhile the Veterinary Pharmacy Center (Pusvetma) -- which
produces vaccines for poultry -- said that it would not be able
to meet the country's vaccine demand as the bird flu disease
spread further. Vaccines are now allowed to be imported but
veterinarians fear that imported vaccines would not be effective
since samples come from chickens in the country producing the
vaccine.

Head of vaccine production, Darmawan, said that Pusvetma has
received orders of 20 million ampules of bird flu vaccine for
this month. The East Java Animal Husbandry Agency has also
ordered approximately 15 million ampules.

However, Darmawan said that Pusvetma is only capable of
producing 6.6 million ampules, adding that Pusvetma has asked for
Rp 1.7 trillion from the government to maximize its production.

Elderly, infants and bird flu -- Page 8