Africa Condemns Rushed Travel Bans Over New Omicron Variant

African leaders have strongly condemned the hurried imposition of travel bans on several Southern African countries by high-income nations, including the US, UK, EU, and some Asian countries, over the discovery of a new COVID-19 variant, Omicron, classified as a SARS-CoV-2 Variant of Concern by the World Health Organisation (WHO). Prominent Africans, including the co-chairman of the African Union's Vaccine Delivery Alliance, Ayoade Alakija, and the president of the African Development Bank, Akinwumi Adesina, have called out the world's decision to punish Africa for no crime.

Key Takeaways:

• The new Omicron variant has been detected in several African countries, including South Africa, Botswana, and Malawi, as well as in Israel, Belgium, and Hong Kong.
• The WHO has classified Omicron as a SARS-CoV-2 Variant of Concern due to its large number of mutations and preliminary evidence suggesting an increased risk of reinfection.
• Africa has been underserved through the global vaccine supply system, with only 15 of the continent's 54 countries having fully vaccinated 10% of their people against COVID-19, compared to 90% of high-income countries.
• African leaders are calling for global justice, equity, and fairness in access to vaccines, and are urging Africa to start producing its own vaccines and implementing its own "healthcare security defence system."
• The WHO has recommended that countries enhance surveillance and sequencing of cases, share genome progressions, and continue to implement effective public health measures to reduce COVID-19 circulation.
• Scientists are still unclear about the virulence of the Omicron variant, but the rash reactions of high-income nations have been said to be based more on politics than science.

Statistics:

• 15 African countries have fully vaccinated 10% of their people against COVID-19, compared to 90% of high-income countries.
• Only 24% of the people in South Africa have been fully vaccinated.
• The Omicron variant has been detected in South Africa, Britain, Belgium, Botswana, Germany, Italy, Hong Kong, Israel, and the Czech Republic, Netherlands, Denmark, and Australia.
• Scientists believe Omicron could be more transmissible and better at evading the body's immune defenses, making vaccines less effective.
• The WHO has identified the following countries as having confirmed cases of the Omicron variant: South Africa, Britain, Belgium, Botswana, Germany, Italy, Hong Kong, Israel, and the Czech Republic, Netherlands, Denmark, and Australia.

Sources:

• Premium Times
• World Health Organisation (WHO)
• British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)
• Haaretz
• World Health Assembly
• South Africa Medical Association (SAMA)