South Africa and Botswana accumulate 62% of the cases of omicron, the new variant of the COVID-19, detected in the world, reported this Thursday the World Health Organization.

Up to now, South Africa and Botswana have reported 172 and 19 cases of omicron, respectively, the WHO Africa office said in a statement, underlining that the countries of the continent are “redoubling measures to detect and control” the spread of the new variant.

To date, four African countries have confirmed omicron infections, with Nigeria (three cases) and Ghana (undetermined number) being the last to provide these data.

The organization reiterates in its latest epidemiological report its call to accelerate global vaccination, especially in groups at risk not yet immunized.

It also asks for more data from the laboratories that sequence cases of the new variant to better understand its scope and characteristics, and the public recommends that it maintain the usual sanitary measures, including the use of masks or physical distancing as far as possible.

The variant omicron was first reported on November 24 in South AfricaAlthough the first laboratory confirmed cases, also in that country, were identified in specimens collected on November 9.

Categorized in: