This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

UNCLAS ROME 00766 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR IO/EDA, EUR/SE, EUR/WE, NEA/ENA, EA/SEA, OES/IHA 
USAID FOR DCHA/OFDA GGOTTLIEB, PMORRIS; GH/KHILL, DCARROLL 
AND BZINNER; AFR/MHARVEY, ALOZANO; EGAT A/AA JSMITH; 
ANE/ACLEMENTS, K/CRAWFORD; EGAT/AG JYAZMAN AND JTHOMAS 
USDA FOR OSEC STUMP/PENN/LAMBERT/CAINE, 
FAS PETTRIE/HUGHES/CLERKIN, APHIS CLIFFORD/HOFFMAN 
DAKAR FOR USAID/WARP HBOTTEMBERG; OFDA/RDAVIS AND 
JSCICCHITANO 
GENEVA FOR NKYLOH/USAID 
HHS FOR OGHA (STEIGER) 
BRUSSELS FOR USAID/PLERNER AND APHIS/PFERNANDEZ 
PARIS FOR GCARNER 
USEUCOM FOR ECJ4 
VIENNA PASS APHIS 
CAIRO PASS APHIS 
 
FROM THE U.S. MISSION TO THE UN AGENCIES IN ROME 
 
E.O.  12958:  N/A 
TAGS: KFLU EAGR EAID CASC SENV SOCI TBIO FAO WHO AVIAN INFLUENZA
SUBJECT:  AVIAN INFLUENZA:  WEEKLY UPDATE ON FAO ACTIVITIES 
#2 FOR THE WEEK ENDING MARCH 10, 2006 
 
REF: (A) 05 ROME 3949; (B) 05 ROME 3320; (C) 05 ROME 2979; 
 
(D) 05 ROME 1142; (E) 05 ROME 3976; (F) 06 ROME 0087; (G) 06 
ROME 0000 (sic); (H) 06 UN ROME 0315; (I) 06 UN ROME 0430; 
(J) 06 UN ROME 0464; (K) 06 UN ROME 0626; (L) UN ROME 0678 
 
¶1.  Summary:  During three days of high-level and technical 
level discussions with FAO on March 7-9, a consensus was 
reached that a more robust global response was needed, with 
FAO, in coordination with OIE, as the global coordinator. 
FAO hosted the series of meetings relating to improving 
emergency response capacity for Highly Pathogenic Avian 
Influenza (HPAI).  The first was a high-level meeting on 
March 7 organized at the request of USDA/Animal Plan and 
Health Inspection Service Administrator Ron DeHaven, in 
follow-up to an APHIS offer to assist FAO with the 
implementation of an incident command system (ICS).  On 
March 8, expanded technical discussions continued with the 
participation of other concerned member states -- Canada, 
France, Germany and Switzerland -- while bilateral 
discussions with FAO Animal Production and Health Division 
(AGA) staff continued on March 9.  The meetings concluded 
with an understanding that FAO/OIE would jointly draft the 
"Agreement on a Mechanism for the Avian Influenza Emergency 
Coordination," which would be based on existing structures 
and frameworks, include all required elements of a crisis 
management center, and be circulated to donors as well as 
other stakeholders for input. A press conference organized 
by the Mission for APHIS Administrator DeHaven resulted in 
world-wide coverage of the leadership role the U.S. is 
playing in cooperation with FAO.  End Summary. 
 
¶2.  At the request of USDA/Animal Plan and Health Inspection 
Service Administrator Ron DeHaven, FAO hosted a high-level 
meeting on March 7 to discuss how to enhance its emergency 
action capabilities for Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza 
(HPAI).  The meeting was organized in follow-up to an APHIS 
offer to assist FAO with implementation of an incident 
command system (ICS).  Louise Fresco, FAO Assistant Director 
General, chaired the meeting which included the AGA as well 
as FAO Emergency Operations and Rehabilitation Division 
(TCE) staff.  Outside participants included a representative 
from the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) as well 
as representatives from the European Commission (EC) and the 
Netherlands who have been having similar discussions with 
FAO. 
 
¶3.  DeHaven stated that the U.S. recognizes there is a need 
for global coordination of H5N1 activities, and sees FAO, in 
coordination with OIE, as playing the global coordinator 
role.  The U.S. was willing to provide both human and 
financial resources to this endeavor.  Participants agreed 
that the steady march of H5N1 across the globe requires a 
proportional increase in response capability. 
 
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Assessment and the Incident Command System 
--------------------------------------------- --------- 
 
¶4. Discussions centered around two major components of the 
Global Mechanism: A) assessments; and B) an incident command 
system (ICS): 
 
A) Assessments:  Given that strengthening national 
veterinary services is critical to the control and 
eradication of H5N1, it was agreed that assessment of 
strengths and weaknesses of veterinary services should be a 
priority, but that better coordination is needed to avoid 
duplication of efforts.  There was consensus that OIE should 
continue to play the lead role in conducting assessments 
based on the Performance, Vision and Strategy tool.  The 
highest risk countries would be given the highest priority 
for assessments.  On the basis of the assessments, medium to 
long-term veterinary capacity improvement projects would be 
developed.  The short-term emergency projects and medium to 
long-term projects should be integrated to ensure 
consistency and effectiveness. 
 
B) Incident Command System:  Participants agreed on the need 
for FAO to coordinate Country Teams for emergency response 
to outbreaks.  The Country Teams would be under the control 
of FAO, composed of international and national or regional 
experts, and available for rapid deployment.  FAO emphasized 
that deployment of Country Teams would require an invitation 
from the affected country.  Further work will be needed on 
the development of expert lists.  It was agreed that FAO and 
OIE should coordinate expert lists using OFFLU, the OIE/FAO 
network of AI experts, as a starting point.  Fresco noted 
that the FAO Director-General had recently moved to 
eliminate many of the institutional constraints to hiring, 
contracting and procurement. 
 
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Global Tactical Plan to be Drafted 
--------------------------------------------- --------- 
 
¶5. Consensus was reached that FAO, in coordination with OIE, 
should continue to be the global coordinator, but that a 
more robust global response is needed from FAO, OIE, donors 
and other stakeholders.   To that end, it was agreed that 
FAO and OIE would develop a draft tactical plan informally 
referred to as the "Agreement on a Mechanism for the Avian 
Influenza Emergency Coordination," which would be largely 
built on existing structures, in particular the FAO/OIE 
Global Framework for Progressive Control of Transboundary 
Animal Diseases (GF-TADs); the FAO/OIE Global Early Warning 
and Response System (GLEWS); and the FAO Emergency Centre 
for Transboundary Animal Disease Operations (ECTAD).  The 
first draft of the document will be completed and circulated 
to the meeting participants by March 17.  After review and 
comments due by March 21, the document will be circulated to 
a wider group including the World Bank, WHO and other UN 
entities involved in this campaign as well as other 
stakeholders, including the private sector, wildlife 
organizations and consumer interest parties.  In an effort 
to garner more political support, the paper could eventually 
be presented to the 74th OIE General Assembly meeting in May 
(21-26) and the International Partnership on Avian and 
Pandemic Influenza (IPAPI) Senior Officials Meeting in 
Vienna in June (6-7). 
 
¶6.  Funding for the Global Strategy could be provided 
through the World Bank Multi-Donor Trust Fund, consistent 
with the outcomes of the Beijing Conference, and from 
individual donors.  The assessments coordinated under the 
Global Strategy would provide a mechanism for prioritizing 
and legitimizing requests for funding from the World Bank 
Trust Fund.  Budget targets for the Global Strategy will 
have to be developed. 
 
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Press briefing 
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¶7.  USMISSION UN ROME organized a press briefing by APHIS 
Administrator DeHaven on March 7.  Wire services present 
included ADN Kronos (which is both an Italian and Middle 
East wire service), ANSA, Associated Press Print and 
Television, Reuters Print and Television, and VOA/CBS News. 
The storyline was picked up by the Washington Post, Boston 
Globe, among other U.S. affiliates, as well as international 
papers from Canada to Australia and China.  Interestingly, 
Reuters also merged the briefing information with a headline 
on the death of a girl in China from AI.  Overall, coverage 
was very positive, highlighting U.S. and EU cooperation with 
FAO and positing DeHaven and the U.S. as actively engaged in 
coordination efforts.  These Rome-based journalists are 
rarely exposed to the U.S. position on AI and yet report 
regularly about the disease via other sources.   USMISSION 
UN ROME hopes this is the first of many such briefings by 
U.S. officials who travel to Rome for FAO meetings on AI and 
other emergencies. 
 
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U.S. Delegation Participates in ECTAD Conference Call 
--------------------------------------------- --------- 
 
¶8. Second, in light of the USDA delegation visit to FAO to 
discuss ICS and the establishment of an AEOC-like (APHIS 
Emergency Operations Center) situation room at FAO, we were 
afforded the opportunity to sit in on a weekly AI ECTAD 
(Emergency Center for Transboundary Animal Diseases) 
conference call with FAO/Bangkok on March 9.  FAO/Bangkok 
staff (Laurence Gleeson and Wantanee Kalpravidh) provided an 
update on the USAID grant, mainly on the recruitment of 
technical assistance and international staff, but also 
highlighting planned workshops and training sessions as 
follows: 
 
-- Progress on Bangkok's recruitment of technical advisors 
to work at the country and national level in Cambodia, Laos 
and Indonesia is almost complete.  The Technical Advisor for 
Vietnam has already begun working. 
 
-- National workshops for Cambodia, Lao and Indonesia are 
being organized as are "Train-the-Trainer" courses for same, 
while national consultants are being recruited to work on 
issues relating to lab equipment training. 
 
¶9.  FAO/Rome staff then went around the room providing 
updates, running down a list of countries which reported H5 
outbreaks -- Pakistan, Serbia & Montenegro, Sweden, Myanmar, 
etc.  Of note for West Africa, staff reported that three 
more states in Nigeria have been confirmed for H5N1, for a 
total of 11 states. 
 
¶10. During an FAO/OIE meeting in Africa during the week of 
Feb 27 - March 4, FAO staff noted that Russia publicly 
stated that working with the U.S. they have knowledge of at 
least 11 countries infected in Africa (FAO staff in the room 
asked the U.S. delegation if we were able to confirm this 
information; none of the delegation members had any 
information that would confirm this assertion).  It was 
reported that an FAO/Rome staff member would be traveling to 
Cote d'Ivoire, Sierra Leone and Liberia, which could be 
added to the list of affected countries in Africa.  On 
Azerbaijan, staff reported that the 7-year-old girl of the 
family of six who was hospitalized was now reportedly 
infected (Note: three family members have already died). 
 
¶11.  Other general matters: 
 
-- FAO staff reported that the Dutch Government is providing 
short-term funds for the transshipment of samples to labs 
for testing. 
 
-- An Argentine wildlife specialist was to begin a 2-3 week 
assignment in Rome beginning March 13, while a Wildlife 
Conservation Society (WCS) specialist would be posted to 
Rome temporarily beginning April 1. 
 
--  FAO's Gender and Population Division reported on its 
work in Turkey to conduct an assessment on the gender and 
social issues associated with AI control and its impacts on 
rural livelihoods.  The ECTAD Socio-economics and Policy 
Working Group is currently developing and testing rapid 
assessment tools for use by FAO emergency response teams. 
 
-- Lastly, during the week of March 13 FAO will host the 
64th (UN) Inter-Agency Standing Committee meeting, which 
will include a session on on Avian and Human Influenza (AHI) 
and Humanitarian Action. 
 
¶12. USMISSION UN ROME will continue to disseminate widely 
FAO activities to combat and control Avian Influenza. 
 
Hall