New Zealand government departments are preparing a joint program of emergency in case of an outbreak of bird flu among its 4 million people.

    Director of Public Health Mark Jacobs said Thursday the health ministry is co-ordinating the ongoing exercise, and agencies will report back to government within the next few weeks.

    Avian influenza has killed 57 people and infected another 112 in Asia since the end of 2003 and health experts fear a small mutation in the H5N1 virus could result in it becoming highly infectious and resulting in a global outbreak.

    Jacobs said it is impossible to know how many people might get sick or die if a pandemic influenza virus hits New Zealand, adding research published in the New Zealand Medical Journal earlier thisyear suggested an outbreak of flu bird in New Zealand might cause 3,700 tolls, and 20,000 people need hospital cares and about one million people need health assistance.

    The World Health Organization has advised government stockpile of Tamiflu doses, one treatment proven to be effective against bird flu in humans.

    New Zealand has spent 26 million NZ dollars (18 million US dollars) to buy 850,000 doses of Tamiflu.

    New Zealand is one of the strictest country with checks in its Customs against disease and insect invasion. But experts and officials said it is no easy thing to fend off the bird flu in case of outbreak.

    Hygiene is more important than Tamiflu in an outbreak, said theexperts, appealing to the public members to keep good habits of everyday life.