Bird Flu Risk Particularly Strong in Sub-Saharan Africa

ByABC News
March 13, 2006, 6:37 PM

March 13, 2006 — -- Of any place on the planet, Niger may be least equipped to deal with an outbreak of bird flu. It's the poorest country in Africa, possibly the poorest in the world. Nearly 20 percent of the population suffers from malnutrition, leaving it vulnerable to infection.

If the H5N1 form of the virus mutates into a pathogen that can be transmitted person to person, it might well happen in the petri dish of sub-Saharan Africa.

"In these countries, the risk of a pandemic virus emerging is much higher than it is in Western Europe," virologist Albert Osterhaus said.

In rural Niger, bird flu is still a panic, not a plague. Not a single human is known to have contracted the disease in Africa. But the society is already having a tough time dealing with the threat.

Niger's economy is 98 percent agricultural, so birds are incredibly important. For rural families, chickens are the closest thing to a savings account.

"When a family member gets sick, we sell a chicken to buy some medicine," said villager Adam Bouku, who has 16 chickens and 16 family members all living under the same roof.

The problem is his savings account has suddenly lost most of its value. No one is eating chicken anymore. And if the birds become sick, they could well be a liability for his family.

Niger's government lacks the infrastructure necessary to mount the most basic defense. The head of the country's Food Security Agency Saidu Bakiri seems to be doing his best to protect Niger's food supply. But he has a staff of six people for a country that's twice the size of Texas.

Border guards are supposed to stop any poultry or eggs from coming in from neighboring Nigeria, where bird flu has now been confirmed on at least 40 poultry farms.

But the border post we visited was little more than a rope line across the road. The border guards claimed they were vigilant.

"We're keeping an eye out," one said. "We know if they are trying to get it across."