6 countries listed as priorities for bird flu grant funding
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2006-01-19 20:41

Cambodia, China, Indonesia, the Laos, Mongolia and Vietnam are listed as priorities for global avian influenza grant funding, according to a multidonor financing framework report adopted at the international pledging conference closed here Wednesday.

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao adresses the International Pledging Conference on Avian and Human Pandemic Influenza in Beijing January 18, 2006. [Xinhua]

"There are a number of important priorities for grant funding,"the report says, listing the six nations as bird flu infected or high-risk countries.

Other priorities include "integrated core programs in Africa," according to the report.

United Nation's coordinator on avian and human influenza David Nabarro told press after the conference that it's better not to be too focused on the question which country is to receive the most funding.

Currently, he said, the major needs were in south and east Asia. But he also cautioned that the avian influenza has become much more dangerous in east Europe, "particularly in Turkey and Ukraine."

"As the situation evolves, we've also seen the needs for funding evolves as well," he said.

Avian Influenza has now spread from Asia to the Middle East and Europe with a possible trend of spreading to Latin America, Africaand elsewhere. So far, about 80 people have been reported died of the disease and over 150 were infected.

In order to raise money to enforce global cooperation on bird flu prevention and cooperation, nearly 700 representatives from over 100 countries and 20 international institutions gathered in Beijing from Jan. 17 to 18.

The conference ended up with over 1.8 billion U.S. dollars of pledged donations, among which 121.6 million U.S. dollars were from the European Commission, 134.9 million U.S. dollars from the European Union (EU), 468 Million dollars from the Asian Development Bank, 334 million dollars from the United States and 155 million dollars from Japan.