The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control has said it was monitoring emerging evidence on the new COVID-19 variant, Omicron, which was first recently identified in Southern Africa.
The new variant “is considered highly transmissible” and has already
triggered a new wave of travel restrictions targeted at countries in
Southern Africa.
However, the NCDC in a statement signed by its Director-General, Dr.
Ifedayo Adetifa, said, “the fears about its ability to evade protective
immune responses and/or its being vaccine-resistant are only theoretical
so far.”
While noting that the “WHO and researchers across the world are
working at speed to gain understanding of the likely impact of this
variant on the severity of COVID-19 and on the potency of existing
vaccines and therapeutics,” the NCDC urged Nigerians to take necessary
precautions.
The disease control agency advised Nigerians to “make every use of the
currently available opportunities to get vaccinated against COVID-19.”
It also reiterated the need for citizens to adhere to public health and
social measures such as the wearing of face masks, hand washing, and
physical distancing.
