BEIJING (February 15 2004): China has allocated special fund to provide emergency aid to Pakistan and five other Asian countries to cover the damage caused by bird flu.

An official of the China told newsman here that the Chinese government has decided to help the Asian countries suffering from avian influenza, including Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Laos and Cambodia.

He said that the bird flue, which has hit some regions in Asia, including China, has caused damage to people's property and security.

To a question, the official said that it has yet not been decided as how to spend the allocation. The exact amount of the financial help for the affected countries is also being worked out, he added.

China is also willing to join with the Asian countries concerned as well as international organisations to make due contribution in the fight against the epidemics, he added.

The Chinese government has also allocated $12 million in special funding for research into bird flu, a spokesman from China's National Avian Influenza Prevention Headquarters said.

The funding would be used to develop vaccines, technology and products for rapid diagnosis, analysis of mutations of the virus, new transmission channels and technology for prevention and control, and the screening of anti-virus drugs, the Spokesman added.

Meanwhile, the Chinese Ministry of Agriculture announced in Beijing that it would invest $60.2 million to set up model zones where livestock diseases will be effectively controlled and eradicated.

This will greatly aid China's major export-led animal and animal products markets.

As a step forward to curb bird flu, the Agriculture Ministry, on Friday, suspended new import permits for US poultry and cancelled any permits already issued.

US poultry products that arrived after February 7 but have not gone through customs declaration and inspection procedure will be destroyed or returned.

It has also asked local authorities to monitor the habits and habitats of migratory birds to prevent the spread of the avian influenza virus that continues to move across the world.

Seven previously suspected outbreaks of the deadly H5N1 bird flu in China have been confirmed by the country's National Bird Flu Reference Laboratory.

The Ministry of Agriculture on Saturday notified that bird flu outbreaks were spotted in Yunnan, Guangdong, Shanghai and Tianjin.

Courtesy Business Recorder