He was speaking at an international conference on 'Avian influenza control and pandemic preparedness in Asia' in New Delhi. Mosharraf co-chaired the conference jointly hosted by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Indian government.

He said that Bangladesh, so far, remained free from bird flu, but seasonal visits of migratory birds and geographical proximity with some highly infected countries posed a threat.

Bangladesh's national avian influenza and human pandemic influenza preparedness and response plan, explained by Mosharraf, was lauded at the conference.

The minister said that the government of Bangladesh prepared the national plan involving all stakeholders such as government institutions, civil society, development partners, public representatives as well as professional and business bodies.

The funds are expected from the World Bank for implementation of the plan and from the US for strengthening the country's disease surveillance activities, he said.

The International Centre for Diarrhoeal Diseases Research, Bangladesh (ICDDR,B) signed an MoU with the US Department of Health to establish a laboratory for investigation and research on the pandemics, he added.

The minister said that as national efforts might not be sufficient to prevent and control the disease, regional coordinated efforts are needed to this end. In South Asia, it could best be done by following the Saarc spirit, based on mutual trust and respect for the welfare of the people in the region, he added.

He also hoped that the declaration adopted by the conference would serve the purpose of regional cooperation in keeping the disease at bay from South Asia.

Mosharraf said the pharmaceutical companies in Bangladesh with their experience in producing antiviral drugs want to assist in developing vaccines against bird flu and conduct necessary diagnostic tests and promote related researches.

The declaration adopted by the conference called for, among other things, development and further strengthening of animal and human diseases surveillance and response systems for early detection and prompt containment of bird flu and other emerging diseases.

WHO Regional Director Samlee Plianbangchang, in his opening speech, said that the avian flu had been affecting only animals, particularly birds and poultry.

But now, he said, the virus H5N1 had crossed the species barriers and already infected human beings in 10 countries globally. As of today, he said, 231 human cases of avian influenza had been reported worldwide and 133 of them proved fatal.

The diseases, he said, had been characterised by a high rate of mortality that is over 50 per cent.

He described the threat of avian flu, coming in the wake of outbreaks of Nipah and Sars, as a formidable challenge of diseases.

Apart from Bangladesh, health ministers from Afghanistan, Bhutan, China, Indonesia, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand took part in the conference.

Indian Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar said his country has made elaborate arrangements to prevent re-entry of bird flu into India.

Indian Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss said his country had also modified its World Bank-funded integrated disease surveillance programme to include surveillance for animal diseases.

He also said that the specific responsibilities allocated by the Asean's coordination plan to tackle the disease had impressed him.