The Burkina Faso government has banned the importation of poultry and poultry products from Benin, Togo and Côte d'Ivoire.

The Burkinabe Ministry of Animal Resources in a statement announcing the ban, said the decision followed outbreak of the highly pathogenic avian influenza, also known as Bird Flu.

It added that Togo, Côte d'Ivoire and Benin reported an outbreak to the World Organization for Animal Health on July 28, August 12 and August 20, 2021.

Faced with the risk of resurgence of this disease on Burkinabè territory, it is necessary to strengthen epidemiological surveillance and border control, the ministry said.

The ministry also called on the heads of the decentralized technical services to sensitize the populations to avoid any risky behavior and to report any massive poultry mortality to the authorities.