PARAMARIBO, Suriname, Oct 23, CMC – Public Health, Welfare and Labour Minister, André Misiekaba, has told the National Assembly that Suriname has no cases of bird flu in individuals who may have been exposed to infected poultry in the Dutch-speaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country.
He said all human samples tested up to and including October 19 were negative for influenza A H5, virus or the H5N1 variant.
Misiekaba saidthe veterinary service of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries (LVV) received a report on September 15 of unusually high mortality at a poultry farm and following an investigation by the Central Laboratory of the Bureau of Public Health (BOG), the presence of influenza A H5 in poultry samples was confirmed.
Misiekaba told legislators that the tests have so far not establish whether it is H5N1 and that the genetic origin and the question as to whether the virus is highly or lowly pathogenic is yet to be determined.
He said samples are being examined by laboratories in the United States and Brazil and the results will be made public as soon as they are received.
Misiekaba said because poultry had been moved to other locations, clearing and disinfection measures have been carried out at the locations involved and that the investigations have so far yielded no confirmed spread outside the initially infected business location.
Misiekaba called this a positive development, but warned that the risk has not completely disappeared.
He said the Public Health Service (BOG) has had nasal and throat swabs tested from employees and field workers who may have been exposed to the virus and all samples so far have tested negative.
He said that while the risk to the general population is assessed as low based on current findings, the BOG is looking for symptoms such as fever, coughing, respiratory problems, and conjunctivitis.
Misiekaba said that well-cooked poultry meat and eggs can be safely consumed, consumers must pay attention to kitchen hygiene and the origin of products.
He said poultry farmers are urged to immediately report unusual illness or mortality among birds and not to move or sell sick animals, telling legislators that there is no reason for panic, but vigilance remains necessary.
Meanwhile, Suriname has not recorded any local transmission of malaria for more than five years even as the country reported an increase in recent times of imported cases.
Director of Public Health, Rakesh Gajadhar Sukul, in an interview with the state-owned Communication Service Suriname (CDS), said Suriname records an average of 10 imported malaria cases per month, increasing to as high as 15 cases.
The authorities say so far this year, significantly more cases have been recorded compared to the same period last year with the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Labour calling for vigilance to prevent the loccal spread of the disease.
“If you have imported cases, you are still malaria-free, because the infection did not occur here,” said Sukul, noting however, there is a risk that an infected person could be bitten by a mosquito in Suriname, after which the parasite could develop further and infect other people.
According to the Malaria Programme, the imported cases originate primarily from the three neighboring countries, particularly Guyana.
Suriname is therefore also collaborating with other countries in the region to strengthen the fight against malaria with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) working with the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization (ACTO) on a model that countries in the Amazon region can adopt.
CMC/lk/ir/2026