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Import of birds from Mongolia banned

The ban was imposed after the ministry received information from the World Health Organisation regarding the spread of avian bird flu virus in Mongolia.­

In addition to imposing the temporary ban on import of live birds from various countries, including Russia recently, the ministry officials, at a meeting in Abu Dhabi, discussed precautionary measures to prevent the entry of bird flu into the country.

The meeting, which was presided over by Obaid Juma Al Matroushi, Acting Under-Secretary of the Ministry, was attended by officials from the General Secretariat of the UAE Municipalities, Abu Dhabi Environmental Authority, Environmental Affairs and Public Health Department, Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority, Department of Municipalities and Agriculture in Al Ain, and Abu Dhabi and Dubai Municipalities.

According to Obaid Al Matroushi, the meeting took stock of the situation, and went into various aspects of bird flu including the causes of the disease, how it spreads, it's dangers, symptoms in birds and human beings and carriers of the infection, particularly migratory birds.

The meeting, he said, dealt with three topics, including the general health of the people, protection to poultry breeding in the country and falcons used for hunting in the UAE.

He said the ministry had carried out surveys on a number of ailments among animals in the country with particular emphasis on birds flu to prevent its entry and spread in the country.

The surveys, he said, included poultry and bird markets, poultry farms, falcon breeding centres and UAE-bound bird consignments at various inlets.

The Ministry gets advance information on the issue from the UN, World Health Organisation and the Food and Agriculture Organisation, he said, adding that the decisions taken by the ministry are based on the information received from those organisations.

The meeting stressed on the importance of mapping out a long-term emergency plan in which all the authorities concerned in the country like the Ministry of Agriculture, Municipalities and Health should participate.

The participants stressed on the need to control what they termed as haphazard breeding of poultry, which might facilitate spread of infection since such farms lack veterinary surveillance.

The Abu Dhabi Environmental Authority expressed its willingness to study the routes and habitats of migratory birds in all the emirates of the country, and not merely in Abu Dhabi. The Authority said it would also conduct laboratory tests if they detected any ailment in the migratory birds.

The authority said it would also specify countries from where birds can be imported, which would be based on accredited international standards.

The meeting stressed on the importance of upgrading veterinary quarantine, which should be reinforced with facilities and well-trained staff to prevent the entry of epidemics across the borders through imported livestock and by-products.

• UAE