A man receives the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine in Abuja, Nigeria last month. Nigeria detected its first case of the omicron coronavirus variant in a sample it collected in October, weeks before South Africa alerted the world to the variant last week, the country’s national public health institute said. the country said on Wednesday.
Gbemiga Olamikan / AP
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Gbemiga Olamikan / AP
A man receives the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine in Abuja, Nigeria last month. Nigeria detected its first case of the omicron coronavirus variant in a sample it collected in October, weeks before South Africa alerted the world to the variant last week, the country’s national public health institute said. the country said on Wednesday.
Gbemiga Olamikan / AP
Nigeria detected its first case of the omicron coronavirus variant in a sample it collected in October, weeks before South Africa alerted the world to the variant last week, the country’s national public health institute said. the country said on Wednesday.
It is the first West African country to record the omicron variation since scientists in southern Africa discovered and reported it, and adds to the list of nearly 20 countries that have recorded the omicron variation, causing ban travel around the world.
The genetic sequencing of COVID-19 positive cases among incoming international travelers confirmed an omicron case dating back to October, the Nigeria Center for Disease Control said in a statement issued by the Director-General. their offered. Nigeria also identified two cases of omicron variation among travelers from South Africa last week.
Nigeria CDC Director-General Dr Ifedayo Adetifa said: “A retrospective sequence of previously confirmed cases among travelers to Nigeria also identified an omicron variation in a sample collected in October of this year. 2021”.
Much remains unknown about the new variant, including whether it is more contagious, as some health authorities suspect, whether it makes people sicker, and whether it can make people sick. interfere with the vaccine or not.
The Nigeria CDC urges states and the country’s public to stay vigilant and calls for improved testing amid concerns that Nigeria’s low testing capacity could become the biggest challenge in the face of the new variant. .
Virus testing is running low in many states and even in the nation’s capital, Abuja. In some areas of Kuje, on the outskirts of Abuja, for example, Musa Ahmed, a public health official, told the Associated Press that no one had been tested for the virus for weeks.
The discovery of the omicron variant in Africa’s most populous country, with a population of 206 million, coincides with Nigeria’s new requirement that all federal government employees be implanted or present COVID-19 test results- 19 negatives made in the last 72 hours.
With the vaccine regulation going into effect on Wednesday, there were chaotic scenes at several offices in the nation’s capital as civil servants did not have immunization cards or negative PCR test results were denied. The security guards turned their backs.
Many workers and security staff do not wear masks.
Adeyunmi Emoruwa, lead strategist at Gatefield, an Abuja-based consulting firm, said: “Governments should invest in promoting stories about vaccine safety, effectiveness and broader public health security implications of poor vaccine uptake. “If civil servants are convinced on these issues, they are naturally more effective advocates for their constituents.”
Across Nigeria, news of the omicron variant – which the World Health Organization has warned poses a “very high” risk – has sparked concern and raised concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic.
At the airport in Lagos, Nigeria’s largest city and economic hub, authorities insisted that travelers wear face masks at the counter, although not many people noticed that many others were selling items. healthcare processes around the airport and in the city.
Nigeria – with 214,218 confirmed infections including nearly 3,000 deaths – has updated its travel advisory, requiring international travelers to arrive for a PCR test 48 hours before the start of their trip. to the country and two more tests, two days and seven days after arrival. Incoming international arrivals must also be quarantined for seven days.
Amid global concern about the omicron variation, the director general of the Nigeria CDC told reporters that the country remains on alert in the face of the emerging crisis.
“We are working very hard to increase ongoing surveillance, especially for domestic travelers, and are also trying to increase testing (including) at land borders,” he said. .
A series of countries have moved to travel bans from many countries, especially southern African countries following the emergence of the omicron variant. But the move was condemned by many, including South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, who is currently in Nigeria on a two-day visit.
Farther west of the continent, Liberia has been conducting surveillance along its border and placing designated health workers there on full alert even though there have been no cases of the variant. omicron is reported there.
Liberia’s Health Minister Wilhelmina Jallah urged people to take precautions but not panic. She urged them to take advantage of the vaccination campaign.
“You can’t go to war if you’re not prepared for it,” she said. “And our preparation for this fight against COVID-19 – whether it’s alpha, delta or omicron – is to protect yourself by getting at least one stab to your arm… so we just wanted to raise this warning.”
