VZCZCXRO4119
RR RUEHHM RUEHLN RUEHMA RUEHPB
DE RUEHKA #0117/01 0220740
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 220740Z JAN 07
FM AMEMBASSY DHAKA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 3041
INFO RUEHZN/ENVIRONMENT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COLLECTIVE
RUEHBK/AMEMBASSY BANGKOK 7906
RUEHLM/AMEMBASSY COLOMBO 7737
RUEHIL/AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD 1454
RUEHKT/AMEMBASSY KATHMANDU 8891
RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI 9583
RUEHGO/AMEMBASSY RANGOON 2508
RUEHCI/AMCONSUL CALCUTTA
RHEFAFM/DIRAFMIC FT DETRICK MD
RHHMUNA/CDR USPACOM HONOLULU HI
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEHPH/CDC ATLANTA

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DHAKA 000117 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: TBIO KFLU KSCA PREL EAID WHO WB BG
SUBJECT: AVIAN INFLUENZA: BUILDING ANIMAL SURVEILLANCE 
CAPACITY 
 
DHAKA 00000117  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1.  SUMMARY.  Avian Influenza (AI) surveillance efforts in 
Bangladesh are expanding to include animal surveillance, but 
much work is needed.  USAID conducted a local "Train the 
Trainers" program for the use of USAID-supplied personal 
protective equipment, decontamination equipment and field 
testing kits for both human and animal response workers.  The 
World Bank is offering to fund a new animal health project to 
increase animal surveillance capabilities and early detection 
of an AI event with a package of grants and loans.  END 
SUMMARY. 
 
¶2.  USAID has identified Bangladesh as a high priority 
country at risk for an outbreak of the Highly Pathogenic 
Avian Influenza (H5N1) strain of AI because migratory 
wildfowl flight paths traverse Bangladesh and its proximity 
to countries with AI outbreaks.  As a result, USAID and other 
international donors are pursuing several programs to improve 
human and animal surveillance capacity in Bangladesh.  The 
international donor community is also working to strengthen 
animal surveillance in Bangladesh to provide more advanced 
warning of an AI outbreak. 
 
Animal Surveillance 
------------------- 
 
¶3.  During a December 2006 visit, USAID Veterinary 
Epidemiologist Dr. Zandra Holloway Andre reviewed both animal 
and human surveillance mechanisms in Bangladesh.  Animal 
surveillance is by far the least developed of the two as the 
Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries is chronically 
under-funded, historically low on the GOB's priorities, and 
not considered a strong career path for GOB civil servants. 
Currently, the Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries has only 
two veterinarians authorized per upazilla (local government 
sub-unit between the district and village level).  They 
operate without reliable field support and frequently 
supplement their government salary with a private practice. 
One indicator of the weakness in the animal health system is 
reports that little work is done at the eight veterinary labs 
across Bangladesh due to persistent shortages of equipment 
and supplies. 
 
USAID Provides Training, Technical Assistance 
--------------------------------------------- 
 
¶4.  USAID is pre-positioning AI outbreak commodities such as 
personal protective equipment, decontamination kits, and 
field testing kits in Bangladesh.  In December, USAID 
conducted a successful "Train the Trainers" workshop on the 
proper use of the equipment for local authorities from the 
Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Livestock and BRAC (a 
local NGO with substantial involvement in poultry 
production). The trainees included epidemiologists (Ministry 
of Health), laboratory heads (Ministry of Livestock), and 
field managers (BRAC).  Additional follow-up is required to 
ensure that the primary trainers pass along their knowledge 
and conduct second level training within their organizations. 
In discussing the trainer role with the participants, they 
highlighted the need for simple, pictographic instructions, 
noting that many end users in the field will be non-English 
speaking and some may not even be literate in Bengali. 
 
¶5.  USAID is working with the UN Food and Agricultural 
Organization (FAO) to establish a basic epidemiology unit 
within the Bangladeshi Department of Livestock Services in 
the Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries.  The inputs into 
this project include technical assistance from FAO experts, 
rapid test kits for the AI virus, reagents for lab testing, 
computers, GPS for field teams, and training.  Currently, 
USAID has distributed 2,000 of the pre-positioned personal 
protective equipment kits (PPE units) to the Bangladesh 
Department of Fisheries and Livestock, with an additional 
4,500 PPE units expected to be delivered in early 2007; these 
are the same units used in the train the trainer exercise. 
 
World Bank Offers Funding 
------------------------- 
 
¶6.  The World Bank conducted an Appraisal Mission for 
Bangladesh Avian Influenza Programs in December, which 
 
DHAKA 00000117  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
included a briefing for development partners.  The World Bank 
is proposing to fund a new project to improve surveillance 
capacity and diagnostics, to conduct both poultry 
industry-focused and public education campaigns, and to 
undertake capacity building in general at all veterinary 
infrastructure levels.  Donor funding of advanced veterinary 
laboratories, even up to a BioSafety Level 3 facility, is 
possible, although maintenance and operation costs are very 
high for a facility at that level.  Funding for the $20 - $25 
million project would consist of $3 million in grants, and 
$17-$22 million in concessionary loans. 
 
Human Surveillance 
------------------ 
 
¶7.  The Bangladesh medical system is stronger than the 
veterinary system and human surveillance is likewise 
considered to be stronger.  Dr. Andre underscored the 
importance of accurate testing for human AI surveillance, 
based on her experiences in Sub-Saharan Africa where AI was 
often misdiagnosed as, or masked by, other more common local 
diseases such as malaria or pneumonia. In this respect, 
Bangladesh's testing capacity will soon be significantly 
enhanced when the International Center for Diarrheal Disease 
Research - Bangladesh (ICDDR-B) completes the US Department 
of Health and Human Services funded upgrade of its facilities 
to provide a BioSafety Level 3 lab. 
 
¶8.  The World Bank assessment team generally gave the 
Bangladesh National AI/Human Pandemic Preparation and 
Response Plan good marks as a document, with the caveat that 
whether or not it will be adequately funded and implemented 
remains to be seen.  Concerning the existing human health 
programs, active since 1998 in Bangladesh and funded by a 
mixture of grant and credit funding, the team noted these 
programs are already prepared for sudden demand increases due 
to the periodic natural disasters in Bangladesh.  The focus, 
therefore, will need to be on improving capacity to handle 
the specific needs of an AI/Human Pandemic event, such as 
isolation facilities and hospital surge capacity. 
 
Comment 
------- 
¶9.  The GOB has not strongly supported veterinary 
infrastructure in the past and this systemic deficit must be 
overcome before AI animal surveillance can be established and 
maintained at internationally recommended levels. 
International donors will need to convince the GOB that it 
should continue to invest in AI human and animal surveillance 
capacity, notwithstanding competition from other 
high-priority public health needs for scarce government 
resources. 
BUTENIS