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Russian authorities have reported seven poultry farm workers aged 29 to 60 years infected with the A(H5N8) strain of avian influenza, also known as bird flu. This is the first reported detection of this strain of avian flu in humans, WHO stated. All seven individuals worked at a poultry processing plant and were therefore exposed to infected birds. None of the infectees have presented respiratory symptoms and remain healthy, according to WHO, which added there was no evidence of human-to-human transmission of avian influenza H5N8, and that the risk of an outbreak among humans remains very low. The strain is a subtype of the influenza A virus that causes flu-like symptoms in wild birds and poultry. Outbreaks of the H5N8 strain have been reported in Russia, Europe, China, the Middle East, and North Africa in recent months. In Vietnam, the monitoring program of the Department of Animal Health has not detected the circulating strain of H5N8. However, from 2021, the department would increase testing in the national avian influenza surveillance program. Dr. Pawin Padungtod, senior technical coordinator of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in Vietnam, said technically, the H5N8 virus strain shares antigenic characteristics with the H5N6 strain circulating in Vietnam. Therefore, the current avian flu vaccine used in Vietnam still works against the H5N8 strain. To prevent H5N8 influenza infection, FAO and WHO recommended breeders strengthen biosecurity measures in the breeding area, comply with poultry vaccination schedules, report unusual cases of poultry deaths and not allow visitors to enter farms. The two avian flu virus strains, H5N6 and H5N1, that have been detected in the country, spread from poultry to humans through contact with infected feces or other bodily fluids, and can prove fatal. …

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* Indian government ministers and officials were following Prime Minister Narendra Modi's lead by opting for an Indian-made vaccine instead of the AstraZeneca one. * Thailand may celebrate its traditional new year Songkran as usual around mid-April, Culture Minister Itthiphol Khunpluem said Wednesday. * China's annual coal output will stand at no higher than 4.1 billion tonnes by the end of the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025), after it climbed 1.4 percent year on year to 3.9 billion tonnes in 2020, said a report issued by the China National Coal Association on Wednesday. * President Joe Biden said on Tuesday the United States would have enough COVID-19 vaccine for every American adult by the end of May. * The European Union aims to increase the region's COVID-19 vaccine production capacity to 2-3 billion doses per year by the end of 2021, Industry Commissioner Thierry Breton was quoted as saying. * German Chancellor Angela Merkel was expected on Wednesday to agree a gradual relaxation of curbs with regional leaders, but the rules can be tightened again if infections jump. * Australia will seek the support of the defence forces in its immunisation drive, as it looks to ramp up a vaccination rollout programme that is running behind schedule. * More than 3.5 million people have been vaccinated in Chile against COVID-19 almost a month after the start of a mass inoculation campaign, the Health Ministry said on Tuesday. It said in a communique that a total of 3,512,326 people have been vaccinated in the country, with 2,259,013 over the age of 60. * OPEC and other oil producers, a group known as OPEC+, are considering rolling over production cuts into April instead of raising output as oil demand recovery remains fragile due to the coronavirus, three OPEC+ sources told Reuters. OPEC+ ministers hold a full meeting on Thursday. * Indonesia, with the world's third biggest rainforest area, reduced the rate of deforestation by 75% last year by …

[Read more...] about World News in Brief: March 3

Illustrative image (Photo: https://asia.nikkei.com/ ) Bangkok (VNA) – The Thai cabinet on March 2 approved a budget worth 6.3 billion baht (210 million USD) for purchasing an additional 35 million doses of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine produced by the UK, bringing its total vaccine ordered to 63 million doses. According to a spokesperson of the Thai government, the new batch of vaccine will arrive in Thailand simultaneously with 26 million doses of AstraZeneca vaccine and 2 million doses of Sinovac vaccine of China ordered previously. Thailand's Ministry of Health is still negotiating to buy more vaccines from other manufacturers as the government prepares to open registration for vaccinations for people. The country officially started its COVID-19 vaccination programme on February 28. Thailand reported 42 new COVID-19 cases and one more death on March 2, lifting the total of infections and fatalities to 26,073 and 84, respectively. Thai Minister of Tourism Pipat Ratchakitprakarn has asked the Ministry of Health to approve the implementation of a vaccine passport system to kick-start the country's tourism industry this year. Pipat said on March 1 that the Thai government is waiting for the World Health Organization (WHO) to announce the vaccine passport before enacting this measure. On March 2, Malaysia granted conditional approval for the use of COVID-19 vaccines made by UK firm AstraZeneca and China’s Sinovac, just days after the Southeast Asian nation launched its nationwide COVID-19 vaccination programme. Malaysia began its COVID-19 vaccination rollout on February 24 using the vaccine developed by US drug-maker Pfizer and German partner BioNTech, as it has tried to rein in a spike in infections and help revive its economy that recorded its worst slump in more than two decades last year. Malaysia aims to vaccinate at least 80 percent of its population of about 32 million by February next year. Last month, the government said …

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