Dr Gardner Murray, Chief Veterinary Officer, Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, informed the OIE that a national simulation exercise, Exercise Eleusis ?5, will be conducted from 30 November to 1 December 2005.

This exercise will simulate an outbreak of avian influenza. Its aim is to evaluate national capability to manage emergency zoonotic outbreaks across industry and government. The objectives of the exercise are to test: the effective integration of nation-wide emergency zoonosis arrangements including - industry and government, state/territory government and Australian Government, and agriculture/health integration; public communication; and, disease control policies and strategies. It will be a functional exercise in that it will take place in an operational environment and will require exercise players to actually perform the functions of their roles, however there will be no field operations.

Exercise Eleusis ?5 will be preceded throughout 2005 by a number of workshops and exercises that will evaluate functional areas including health/agriculture integration, public communications, resource management, and national decision-making.