09.03.2011

Outbreaks of H5N1 avian influenza among poultry in Bangladesh - already three times higher this year than the same period last year - have caused “serious concern” for the authorities. Bangladesh has a very high population density - and as every backyard farm has poultry, it’s very easy for the virus to spread from one backyard to another. Since the beginning of the year, 200,000 birds have been culled in 92 outbreaks. About two million birds have been culled since the first outbreak in 2007. Avian influenza was first detected in Bangladesh’s capital, Dhaka, in March 2007 and one human case was reported in May 2008.