Bird flu, lassa fever: WHO urges Nigeria, others to invest in vaccine development of animal strains of virus
World Health Organisation (WHO) has appealed to governments in Nigeria and others to invest in vaccines for all animal strains of the influenza virus as an insurance policy in case of an outbreak in humans.
Incoming chief scientist at the WHO, Jeremy Farrar, who stated this, Monday, expressed concern that the health body and the rest of the world are ‘in slow motion watching something which may never happen.’
Countries ranging from the United States and Britain to France and Japan have suffered record losses of poultry in outbreaks of avian flu in the past year. While those in Africa continue to reel from the damage to human lives caused by the lassa fever, ebola virus.
The recent spread to mammals of H5N1, commonly known as bird flu, needed to be monitored, but the risk to humans remained low, the WHO said earlier this month.
Farrar said; “he would like to see the pharmaceutical industry at least conduct some clinical trials for all influenza strains such that the world would not have to start from scratch to initiate global manufacturing should the need arise.
“My concern that we’re in slow motion watching something which may never happen.
“But if it were to happen, would we look back on what we’re doing at the moment and say, why didn’t we do more?” he said at the media briefing.
