<em>Traditional Communication and Compensation in the Avian Influenza Crisis Management</em>

Abstract

The global outbreak of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) between 2005 and 2009 created social tension and potential conflicts in various communities in the developing world, especially in Africa. Conflict between citizens involved in the poultry value chain (production, marketing, and distribution) and national governments was imminent because total depopulation of all livestock on infected farms was an integral part of the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for managing the avian influenza emergency. Depopulation of farmers’ stocks without proper dialogue and compensation would have had disastrous consequences, especially in Nigeria where distrust between government officials and the general public had been very high. But built into the process of controlling avian influenza in Nigeria were two key elements that sought to preempt such conflicts–communication and compensation. These two, in turn, derived from traditional practices in Nigeria which, from ancient times, sought to (a) reduce tension and mitigate conflicts by striving to restore people to their original status before the disaster befell them and (b) engage communities proactively in dialogue and reach consensus on response mechanisms in advance over issues that could create conflict. This article examines the communication and compensation strategies built into the process of controlling avian influenza in Nigeria and links them to traditional conflict prevention mechanisms in the country.