Tangerang, Banten - Health Minister Siti Fadillah Supari  said Indonesia has received an offer from Russia to cooperate for the provision of a special kind of anti-bird flu (Avian Influenza) vaccine.

"The AI vaccine is different from the previous one because this vaccine is applied by nasal spraying," Minister Supari said upon her arrival at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport from an overseas trip on Saturday.

AI vaccine was usually given to patients infected with bird flu virus through injections.

The Russian government had also offered  cooperation in other  health-related matters such as training of medical professionals  and provision of medicines,  she said.

Minister Siti Fadillah, the chairwoman  of the Food and Drug Control Agency (POM), Husniah Rubiana Thamrin Akib, and senior diplomat Makarim Wibisono  had just arrived from Geneva, Switzerland, where they attended the 61st World Health Assembly (WHA) held by the United Nations and the World Health Organization (WHO).

Some 112 health ministers from 193 countries had participated in the 61st World Health Assembly which discussed the annual task of reviewing progress and setting new priorities for WHO, one of the most powerful tools in global public health.

Around the world, according to WHO, 382 people have been infected with highly pathogenic avian flu since 2003, and 241 have died.

Apart from Russia, Indonesia had also received support and cooperation offers in the health sector from Britain, Iran and Australia, she said. 

"However, only the cooperation with Russia has been confirmed, while planned cooperation with other countries are still being processed," the minister said.

At the Sixth International Bird Flu Summit held in Bali last March 2008, Russia had offered to join hands with Southeast Asian countries to produce a bird flu vaccine.

"Our goal is to demonstrate the standards of vaccine production in Russia and analyze possibilities of cooperation with local producers," said Alexei Kupriyanov, deputy director general of the Microgen Corporation at Russia`s Health Ministry, as reported by Ria Novosti.

Meanwhile, Igor Krasilnikov, head of research and development at Microgen, said at the Bali meeting that Microgen mainly produces vaccines, including for bird flu.

It is applied only once through the nose, with a high probability of being effective against different bird flu strains.

"We have signed a special agreement with the World Health Organization (WHO) on moving the production of these vaccines to the countries that need them the most, such as Indonesia, Vietnam and Thailand," Krasilnikov said.

- Source : Antara News Agency, 25 May 2008