Benin`s minister of agriculture, livestock and fisheries and his counterpart of health revealed on Friday that the government has formulated an emergency plan to curb the possible spread of bird flu in the country after the discovery of the continent`s first cases in neighbouring Nigeria.

The two minister told a news conference that development partners and actors in the poultry sector had participated in the plan`s formulation.

According to them, the emergency plan consists of an information component as well as actions to be taken to curb the infectious disease that has been detected in Nigeria with which Benin shares a common border of more than 750 kilometres.

Benin has immediately imposed a temporary ban on the distribution and transit of poultry, its parts or frozen chicken, day old chicks, eggs and livestock feed from countries affected by bird flu.

The government has also started updating the list of affected countries and to wage an awareness campaign about the disease.

Other actions include the enhancement of health control measures at border entry points such as ports, airports and roads to prevent the entry of bird flu in Benin.

Meanwhile, the two ministries appealed to the population and poultry keepers to inform the nearest veterinary centre and local authorities in case they come across a suspicious dead chicken or wild bird.

They also urged them to abide by basic hygienic conditions, avoid moving animals, eating raw eggs or half-cooked chicken found dead or cheaply bought.

The government has also created a crisis inter-ministerial committee to monitor the situation and co-ordinate the implementation of the emergency plan to combat bird flu.