Indonesia Refocuses Strategy in the Fight against Avian Influenza

JAKARTA, August 25, 2006 – The Indonesian government has refocused its strategy in the fight against avian influenza. Public awareness, disease surveillance, and animal control measures have become the top three priorities to bring avian influenza under control, the government announced at an international donor conference held here August 23 and 24.

“We have been learning from our experience in combating avian influenza since 2003,” said the Indonesia National Committee for Avian Influenza Control and Pandemic Influenza Preparedness (Komnas FBPI) FBPI Chief Executive Mr. Bayu Krisnamurthi. “All of our prevention programs are important, but the focus is to control the disease at its source, that is, in the agricultural sector. Here the objective is to prevent the avian influenza from spreading and mutating,” he added.

Avian influenza is endemic in animals in 29 of Indonesia’s 33 provinces. To date, Indonesia has 62 recorded human cases of the disease, of whom 47 have since died. In almost every human case, an animal source for the disease is suspected. Experts fear the H5N1 virus could mutate into a strain that passes easily between humans, which could then set off a global influenza pandemic.

Representatives from donor agencies, including the World Bank, United Nations agencies, donor countries, and non-government organizations agreed the refocused strategy is the right approach.

“We now have a clear path forward,” said Word Bank Country Director for Indonesia Mr. Andrew Steer. “I think we have an opportunity here to reverse the avian influenza situation in Indonesia. The first line of attack has to be animal health.”

The refocused strategy places a particular emphasis on risk communication, information dissemination and public awareness, Mr. Bayu said.

“Indonesia is home to millions of ‘back-yard farmers’ who raise free-range poultry. This is an extremely difficult sector to control,” he explained. “Public understanding and awareness of the disease is a key element to combating the virus.”

A national public-awareness campaign will kick off on September 1, 2006, telling Indonesians about simple, effective steps they can take to reduce their risk of contracting bird flu.

The refocused strategy also gives priority to surveillance for avian influenza in animals and humans, and controlling the disease at its source, in animals, through vaccination, culling and compensation for bird owners, and bio-security measures.

Mr. Bayu urged donors to address major funding gaps that remain in the government’s refocused bird flu plan. The Indonesian government estimates put the total cost of bringing avian influenza under control over the next three years at US$813 million, not including pandemic preparedness measures.

Current identified funding falls well below this, however. The Indonesian government has budgeted a total of US$57 million to fight avian influenza in 2006, and US$46 million in 2007. International donors have committed another US$47 million to address priority areas in the bird flu campaign.

Most international funding assistance does not go to the Indonesian government, but is channeled through technical agencies who carry out bird-flu control programming, like the World Health Organization, the Food and Agriculture Organization, UNICEF. No international donor funds currently support vaccination or culling and compensation programs, both high-priorities in the fight against bird flu.

Mr. Steer called on the Indonesian government and international donors to work together to find the necessary resources to fund the refocused strategy.