Eliminating the highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza virus from poultry in the six countries where it remains endemic will take ten or more years, according to a new FAO report.

At its peak in 2006, the H5N1 strain of highly pathogenic avian influenza (H5N1 HPAI) was reported in 60 countries. Today most have managed to stamp it out - but the virus remains firmly entrenched in Bangladesh, China, Egypt, India, Indonesia and Vietnam due to a combination of three factors, according to the report.

A Global Strategy for Prevention and Control of H5N1 HPAI developed by FAO and the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) cautions that elimination of infection from countries where the H5N1 virus is endemic will require consistent engagement and support, and advocated a medium- to long-term approach - rather than just an emergency response.

Over the past seven years, FAO's collaborative HPAI Global Program has contributed significantly to limiting the impact of the disease, establishing stronger national systems, and strengthening regional coordination for disease preparedness, prevention and control.

The program has been implemented through 170 projects, actively involving more than 130 countries that have benefited in terms of inputs for direct disease control, laboratory and farm detection systems, capacity building, vaccines, vaccination strategies and prevention measures that have kept the disease out.