In a bid to enhance collaboration and share best practices in HIV prevention and control, representatives from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), Cyprus, and Egypt convened in Cairo for the first Exchange of Experts meeting in 2024.
To assess the level of preparedness of EU/EEA Member States to respond to zoonotic avian flu outbreaks, ECDC has carried out two surveys - one assessing the laboratory capacity for molecular diagnosis and characterisation of zoonotic influenza viruses, and the other focusing on measures applied to protect exposed people during outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza.
In a technical report published today, ECDC, proposes a targeted testing approach in areas with ongoing avian influenza outbreaks in poultry and detections in wild birds and other animals, focusing on severe respiratory or unexplained neurological disease.
Progress towards ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030 is variable across the region, and most countries in Europe and Central Asia are currently far from achieving the 2025 targets.
The situation regarding avian influenza continues to evolve in Europe and globally, with reports of new outbreaks in birds and occasional infections in mammals. Sporadic human infections have been reported in countries outside the EU, while the risk to the public in the EU remains low.
In February 2023, Cambodia reported a family cluster in Sithor Kandal district, Prey Veng province, with two people (a girl and her father) infected with avian influenza A(H5N1) virus.