WHO seeks $31m for bird flu

WHO seeks $31m for bird flu

THAILAND: The World Health Organization (WHO) will ask for US$31
million from a donors meeting in China in January to help Asian
nations prepare for a possible bird flu pandemic, a UN official
said on Thursday.

The money is needed to provide technical assistance to 11
Asian nations working on national plans to fight the deadly
virus, Jay Narain, director of WHO's communicable disease
department for Southeast Asia, told Reuters.

"We have no time to lose and money has to be made available so
implementation of preparedness plans can start as soon as
possible. Otherwise it may be too late," Narain said.

A funding request would be finalized in two weeks for
submission to the Jan. 17-18 donors' meeting organized by the
World Bank and the China's Health Ministry in Beijing, he said.

The $31 million would only last six months to a year and more
would be needed to help poor countries boost surveillance and
improve laboratories to monitor avian influenza.

Epidemiologists and lab experts from 11 Asian nations --
including hard-hit Indonesia and Thailand as well as India and
South Korea -- held a 4-day meeting in Bangkok to review their
pandemic plans. --Reuters