South Africa has reported the highly pathogenic H5N1 strain of avian influenza, or bird flu, on two poultry farms in the country, the World Organisation for Animal Health said on Wednesday.
The cases were the first in South Africa since September last year, Paris-based WOAH said in a notification.
South Africa's poultry sector has been recovering from an outbreak in 2023 that led to the loss of a third of the national chicken flock. The industry has been wary of a resurgence of the diseases amid criticism of the rollout of a government vaccination programme. 