VZCZCXRO5442
OO RUEHDU RUEHGI RUEHJO RUEHMR RUEHPA
DE RUEHUJA #0441 0531721
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 221721Z FEB 06
FM AMEMBASSY ABUJA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 4701
INFO RUEHZO/AFRICAN UNION COLLECTIVE
RUEAUSA/DEPT OF HHS WASHDC
RHFMISS/CDR USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE
RUEHRO/USMISSION UN ROME 0039
RUFOADA/JAC MOLESWORTH RAF MOLESWORTH UK
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RUEKDIA/DIA WASHDC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC//USDP/ASD-HD//
RUEHPH/CDC ATLANTA GA
RUEHRC/DEPT OF AGRICULTURE WASHDC

UNCLAS ABUJA 000441 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
FOR OES NANCY POWELL 
USDA FOR FAS/OA, FAS/DLP, FAS/ICD AND FAS/ITP 
USDA ALSO FOR APHIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: TBIO KFLU EAID AMED EAGR NI
SUBJECT: FEB 22 NIGERIA AVIAN FLU UPDATE 
 
REF:  ABUJA 437 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary. The GON announced Feb. 21 that AI has been 
confirmed in an eighth state, Gombe State.  The Chief 
Veterinary Officer (CVO) said Nigeria has 170 surveillance 
sites nationwide where the disease is most likely to be 
encountered, and the GON has tested more than 1,200 samples 
of suspected animal disease cases over the last few months. 
The GON continues considering how to offer compensation to 
bird owners.  The Ministry of Agriculture has adopted a one- 
page checklist that will help local officials decide how 
suspect birds should be treated, but the approach of this 
checklist likely is too cautious and may need to be 
strengthened.  End summary. 
 
¶2. (U) Economic officer and U.S. Mission personnel attended 
on Feb. 22 an information session at the Government of 
Nigeria's (GON) Avian Influenza (AI) Crisis Management 
Center.  A map dated Feb. 21 and issued by the Nigerian 
Animal Disease Information System showed the confirmed 
presence of AI (farms and wild birds) in eight states: 
Gombe, Bauchi, Katsina, Kano, Zamfara, Kaduna, the Federal 
Capital Territory, and Plateau.  Gombe State was the new 
addition to this list. 
 
¶3. (U) A GON official said Nigeria is implementing active 
and passive surveillance measures, and that any outbreak of 
AI should be reported to the World Organization for Animal 
Health within 24 hours.  Nigeria has established 170 
surveillance sites nationwide where the disease is most 
likely to be encountered, and the GON now has tested more 
than 1,200 samples of suspected animal disease cases over 
the last few months.  The official explained that reports of 
concern will go to the state veterinary services, and then 
to the federal director of livestock and pest-control 
services.  Kano State has 52 affected farms, while about 
160,000 birds in the state have been affected. 
 
¶4. (U) One participant cautioned that culling birds itself 
poses a threat, in that the persons and equipment involved 
in these operations can spread the virus if not sufficiently 
sterilized.  A Nigerian official said the GON continues 
considering how to offer compensation to bird owners. 
 
¶5. (SBU) During the meeting, the GON passed out a one-page, 
primary-stage "decision tool for depopulation [culling] of 
poultry farms."  The document was based on information 
provided by the European Commission's regional project on 
animal disease surveillance.  The checklist, which includes 
six factors, is to guide on-the-ground "investigation team 
leaders" in the absence of laboratory results to enable them 
to conclude "beyond a reasonable doubt" that a suspicious 
incident is likely AI.  According to the checklist, 
"Whenever three or more statements are true, you may make 
the decision to hand the responsibility for destocking 
(depopulation), decontamination (disinfection), and 
compensation to the appropriate state veterinary officer." 
Also, "If only one or two statements are true, you may not 
request to depopulate the farm, and you will keep the farm 
in quarantine until laboratory results are received or until 
further notice."  In discussions afterward, a visiting U.S. 
Centers for Disease Control (CDC) official told the USG 
officials present the GON should not give all six factors 
equal weight, and that considering AI's threat, the 
requirement for three "yeses" was too steep.  CDC officials 
in Nigeria may ask the UN Food and Agriculture Organization 
in Abuja to approach the GON about strengthening these 
primary tripwires. 
FUREY