Brasília – A provisional measure published Tuesday (6) on Brazil’s Official Gazette opened an extraordinary line of credit of BRL 200 million (USD 40 million) for the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock for actions against the highly pathogenic avian influenza (H5N1).
The publication is signed by president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Planning and Budget minister Simone Tebet.
The Ministry of Agriculture issued a statement saying that due to the animal health emergency in force in the country and the confirmation of cases in wild birds in at least four states, the control and containment actions will be intensified.
The credit, according to the ministry, will be applied in the Unified System of Attention to Agricultural Health (SUASA). Planned actions include rapid identification, testing, and health case of the suspicious cases.
“Technical teams will be able to use reinforcement for such on-site specific actions,” the statement said.
“Brazil remains free of avian influenza in commercial production and retains its avian influenza-free status according to the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH), exporting its products for safe consumption,” the statement went on.
New cases
The ministry confirmed on Monday (5) the first case of H5N1 in the state of São Paulo. The wild Thalasseus maximus (royal tern) was found in the coast city of Ubatuba. Pictured, a royal tern in the Caribbean.
Another new case was detected in a royal tern Niterói, Rio de Janeiro. Overall, 24 cases were detected in wild bird across the states of Espírito Santo, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Sul, and São Paulo.
Translated by Guilherme Miranda
