Reuters reports that the "rich-poor divide" is hampering efforts to combat the Asian Bird Flu.

Relatively wealthy countries such as Australia, Hong Kong and Singapore have begun stockpiling drugs and have comprehensive pandemic plans in place.

But some poor Asian nations, such as the Philippines, still have no stockpile of antiviral drugs and are unlikely to be able to afford one at prices of up to $180 per person...

Vietnam, where bird flu has killed more than 40 people since late 2003, is working on an emergency plan with foreign agencies but lacks skills and resources, said Anton Rychener, the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization representative there.