Dr. Junaidu A. Maina, Chief Veterinary Officer of Nigeria and Director, Federal Department of Livestock and Pest Control Services has been appointed Member of Steering Committee of DFID funded Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI), commonly known as bed flu, Project.

The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), Royal Veterinary College, and the University of California at Berkeley have formed a partnership to develop and promote pro-poor Bird Flu risk reduction strategies.

A statement made available to Daily Trust states that the goal of the research project is to help African and Asian governments and international organizations make decisions to limit the spread of bird flu, while minimizing the impact thereof on different socio- economic groups, particularly the poor.

To ensure that the goal of the project is achieved, the partnership have established a steering committee made up of renowned scientists who will provide scientific oversight, high ranking country officials engaged in Avian influenza control to provide feed back on contextual relevance and International organizations to provide linkages with other international programmes.

The director, Federal Department of Livestock and Pest Control Services in the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources, Dr Junaidu A. Maina, the only Nigerian among the 15 member committee, was chosen in recognition of his wealth of experience and the laudable efforts of the country through the Department of Livestock and Pest Control Services in containing Bird Flu in Nigeria."

Another purpose of this research is to aid decision makers in developing pro-poor control measures at the national and international levels that are not only cost effective and efficient in terms of reducing risk but also enhance livelihoods, particularly those of smallholder producers in developing countries," it said.

It added that the Department for International Development (DFID) of the United Kingdom is funding the research project which is expected to last from 2007 to 2010.

The Steering Committee held its inaugural meeting on November 2, 2007 at the Novartis Foundation, London and will continue to meet once a year until the end of the project.