Geneva - The risk of a pandemic sparked by the H5N1 strain of bird flu remains a real threat to human health and the world still needs another three years to prepare, the World Health Organization, WHO, warned Wednesday. WHO said the virus, which passes from birds to humans, had killed 200 of the 350 people confirmed as infected worldwide. It had struck in 60 countries.
WHO avian flu expert David Nabarro told journalists in Geneva it was still feared that the H5N1 strain, the most dangerous ever recorded, could be the virus that mutates and causes the next human influenza pandemic by passing from human to human.
"We do not know when this will happen but there will be a human influenza pandemic at some stage in the future. H5N1 is capable of this." said Nabarro.
Despite the threat, attention to avian flu had waned in 2007. Up to 2.5 billion dollars, including 1 billion in loans, had been pledged by international governments but more funds would be needed.
Veterinary and health services had risen to the challenge posed by the virus by responding promptly to outbreaks.
There had been a major improvement in Turkey during the last two years but there were still serious problems in a number of countries: Indonesia, which has seen the highest death toll, Bangladesh, Nigeria, northern Egypt, China and Vietnam.
The continued circulation of the virus among poultry raised the likelihood of a pandemic.
WHO was co-ordinating preparations and overseeing moves to speed up vaccine production globally but there was another two to three year's hard work to ensure the world was ready, according to Nabarro.
A report on the preparedness of 146 countries would be presented to the next ministerial conference on avian and pandemic flu due to take place in New Delhi, India on December 4-6.
