Turkey may qualify for US$30 million for bird flu

WASHINGTON - Turkey could qualify for US$30 million ($43.04 million) in aid from the World Bank after an assessment of its needs to deal with the bird flu virus, an bank official said today.

"A joint assessment has come up with a US$30 million requirement to fill the needs to improve surveillance, veterinary services and put in place a basic human health component to deal with the outbreak," Juergen Voegele, World Bank sector manager for rural development in Eastern Europe, told Reuters in an interview.

He said Turkey has the capacity to deal with the current outbreak of the deadly virus but it will require significant spending.

- REUTERS