VZCZCXRO9606
RR RUEHCHI RUEHCN RUEHDT RUEHHM
DE RUEHJA #0068/01 0110857
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 110857Z JAN 08
FM AMEMBASSY JAKARTA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 7615
RUEHPH/CDC ATLANTA GA
INFO RUEAUSA/DEPT OF HHS WASHINGTON DC
RUEHRC/USDA FAS WASHDC
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
RUEHZS/ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN NATIONS
RHHMUNA/HQ USPACOM HONOLULU HI
RHHMUNA/CDR USPACOM HONOLULU HI//J07/CATMED/CAT//
RUEHBK/AMEMBASSY BANGKOK 8284
RUEHBY/AMEMBASSY CANBERRA 1864
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS 1073
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 7711

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 JAKARTA 000068 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPT FOR EAP/MTS, G/AIAG AND OES 
USAID FOR ANE/CLEMENTS AND GH/CARROLL 
DEPT ALSO PASS TO HHS/WSTEIGER/ABHAT/MSTLOUIS AND HHS/NIH 
GENEVA FOR WHO/HOHMAN 
USDA/FAS/OSTA BRANT, ROSENBLUM 
USDA/APHIS ANNELLI 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: TBIO AMED CASC EAGR AMGT PGOV ID
SUBJECT: AVIAN INFLUENZA - INDONESIA ATTEMPTS TO REORIENT TANGERANG 
PROJECT 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary.  The Tangerang Trilateral Project reveals 
Indonesia's overall challenge in combating avian influenza (AI) - a 
lack of an integrated approach among government ministries and 
regional and district governments.  Increased public scrutiny and 
heightened government interest offers a new opportunity to turn the 
project around.  In an effort to invigorate it, Nyoman Kandun, 
Director General of Communicable Diseases and Environmental Health 
at the Ministry of Health (MOH), convened a three-day interagency 
meeting commencing January 7 to review sector action plans and 
integrate activities into a coordinated implementation plan.  The 
meeting follows a series of internal Government of Indonesia (GOI) 
meetings in December that recommended stronger coordination for the 
project, following the occurrence of seven human cases of AI in the 
Tangerang area since August 2007.  The Government of Singapore 
shares our concern and is working closely with us to improve the 
management and technical capability of the project.  A successfully 
implemented project could yield solutions that stakeholders can 
apply more broadly in other districts in Indonesia. End Summary. 
 
Improving Financial Situation in 2008 
------------------------------------- 
 
¶2. (SBU) The Tangerang Trilateral Project, launched in 2005 and 
named for the suburb of Jakarta which experienced the first human AI 
case, has been slow to deliver results due to a lack of GOI 
interagency focus.  At a June 5, 2007 technical meeting, the 
Tangerang Secretariat developed an ambitious work plan for the 
remainder of 2007, but lack of funding prevented full 
implementation.  Although the GOI initially planned a 2007 Tangerang 
budget of 20 billion rupiah ($2.21 million), it ended up devoting 
very little funding towards Tangerang, using the money instead for 
the National Poverty Alleviation Program. 
 
¶3. (SBU) The Ministry of Health (MOH) Center for Disease Control 
(CDC) requested Rp 15 billion ($1.59 million) for general health 
issues for Tangerang in 2008.  According to our sources, the GOI has 
already released Rp 5 billion ($0.53 million) of this 2008 funding. 
Participants in the January 7-9 meeting in Tangerang are working out 
the allocation of the funds.  Sufficient GOI, US and Singapore 
financial support therefore seems to be in place to move the project 
forward in 2008. 
 
New Focus on Integrated Work Plan 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶4. (U) Seven new AI cases have surfaced in Tangerang since August 
2007 and public awareness has prompted the GOI to revamp its efforts 
on Tangerang.  The GOI has conducted interagency coordination 
meetings and requested that all agencies develop sector action plans 
to incorporate into an integrated project work plan for review at 
the January 7-9 meeting.  The meeting will merge four separate 
action plans from the Project Secretariat, Banten Province, 
Tangerang District and Tangerang Municipality in order to break down 
stove pipes, create real-time data sharing, and promote cross-sector 
coordination of pilot project activities. Over 30 participants from 
central, regional and district authorities for both human and animal 
health are participating in the meeting. 
 
Singaporean Perspective 
----------------------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) In 2007, Singapore provided $600,000 of in-kind assistance 
including vehicles, equipment, supplies for the project.  In late 
2007, Singapore also released $200,000 to support project 
operations.  However, project vehicles, equipment and supplies 
purchased through Government of Singapore funding languished in a 
warehouse while waiting for GOI approval to accept the international 
assistance.  Singapore has made the release of additional funding 
contingent on the project meeting specified milestones and timelines 
based on a work plan that Singapore asked the project to submit by 
January 31, 2008. 
 
¶6. (SBU) According to Singaporean Embassy contacts, the Singapore 
 
JAKARTA 00000068  002 OF 002 
 
 
government will not pull out of the Tangerang project for political 
and public relations reasons.  Their experts believe that the GOI is 
technically capable of implementing a work plan but will only do so 
under continued pressure. 
 
USG Contributions to the Trilateral Project 
------------------------------------------- 
 
¶7. (SBU) The REDI Center, a joint US/Singapore-sponsored 
organization based in Singapore, currently channels direct USG 
funding for the Tangerang Trilateral Project from DHHS ($400,000) 
and USDA ($200,000).  These funds are supporting the activities of 
the Pilot Project Secretariat.  Direct USG funding of the project 
started in June 2007, and to date the REDI Center has allocated 
approximately $50,000. There is also substantial in-kind support of 
AI surveillance and control operations for the project through 
USAID.  The 2008 GOI funding will support local costs of the project 
operations. 
 
AI Still an Agricultural Problem...For Now 
---------------------------------------- 
 
¶8. (SBU) AI is primarily an agricultural problem, and the issues in 
Indonesia will show little progress until there is a concerted, 
comprehensive long-range program to deal with it.  The Tangerang 
Pilot Project could be helpful in demonstrating how to mount such a 
comprehensive agricultural control program in the Indonesian 
setting.  The GOI's active project management and DG Kandun's 
engagement over the past two months demonstrate significant 
improvement and raise expectations that the project's implementation 
may be finally turning the corner.  If the government can be 
successful in controlling AI in Tangerang, it (and the international 
community) can apply valuable lessons learned in other districts. 
However, even if Tangerang were to eradicate AI in poultry, it would 
be impossible to keep the district AI-free when it is susceptible to 
reintroduction from other AI affected areas in Indonesia, unless 
there are basic changes in the way Indonesians rear, market and 
process poultry nationwide.   Sporadic human cases will continue to 
occur as long as AI remains entrenched in poultry, no matter how big 
the investment on the health side.  The response of the Ministry of 
Agriculture and local animal health authorities to controlling AI 
has been woefully inadequate because they lack the capacity, 
resources, and leadership to mount the kind of program that the 
solution needs.  We will not see progress until GOI stakeholders 
address the basic agricultural problem. 
 
HUME