Why is the ADB willing to give a grant for bird flu but not HIV?
********************************
ADB willing to aid Burma to fight bird flu
The Asian Development Bank said they were willing to provide assistance to
Burma in the wake of last week’s outbreak of bird flu, should the country
request it.
ADB announced on Thursday a $38 million programme to help poor countries,
including Burma, to bridge the gaps in their efforts to defend against
bird flu and to strengthen regional cooperation to fight the disease.
"Assistance to a country, including [Burma], will never be imposed, but
ADB will answer requests for assistance," said Graham James Dwyer,
External Relations Specialist of the ADB.
Following the Burmese military junta's brutal crack-down on student
protestors in 1988, the ADB stopped all monetary lending and technical
assistance operations in Burma. However, the ADB has considered assisting
Burma to fight against bird flu as a part of the global response to the
disease.
"…the strength of the global response to bird flu will be determined by
its weakest link…Therefore, ADB will provide assistance through its new
bird flu project to all member countries, including [Burma], if the
situation warrants," he added.
The project, jointly launched by ADB, ASEAN, the Food and Agriculture
Organisation and the World Health Organisation, aims to provide assistance
to developing countries to fight against avian influenza until
international organisations can assist them.
Under the project, countries can receive direct assistance if they request
ADB support and outline specific activities to combat the virus. Specific
interventions can also be requested by the project’s technical partners,
such as the FAO and WHO—both of whom have made such an appeal for Burma.
Graham told Mizzima that the ADB has requested clarifications on the kind
of assistance that Burma needs, but that if the country asked for
emergency aid, the ADB would rapidly address it as an emergency case.
"Support for [Burma] will be through regional activities such as sharing
of information, epidemiological data, and training. If there are emergency
needs in the country with regional implications, support could be provided
through the emergency facility of the project," he said.
Burmese authorities are battling an outbreak of the H5N1 virus in the
north-central part of the country, where the first confirmed case was
report on March 13. The government has promise to be transparent and
inform the international community immediately of the disease.
"We hope that this transparency will continue…We hope that, in fighting
Avian flu, the Government will consider only the technical aspects and the
emergency of the problems, without giving priority to political demands,"
said Graham.
He added: "Access to those regions where bird flu outbreaks have been
identified is important to control rapidly the outbreaks and prevent the
spread of avian flu."
Mungpi
Mizzima News
21 March 2006
