Accra, April 5, GNA - The Ministry of Trade and Industry has with immediate effect banned the importation of all live birds, poultry and poultry products including feathers from Burkina Faso as a result of the outbreak of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) in the that country.

The HPAI otherwise known as Avian Influenza or Bird Flu is a highly contagious poultry disease that could be transmitted to humans by direct contact with infected live poultry and causes widespread fatality of poultry and serious economic damage.

A statement signed by Kodua Edjekumhene, Public Relations Officer of the Ministry, said the ban was to protect the national poultry industry and human health.

It said the ban placed on the importation of the poultry and poultry product from Cameroon, Iran, Nigeria, Romania and Turkey as well as Cambodia, Indonesia, China, Japan and the other Asian Regions was still in place. 5 April 06