The Federal Government of Nigeria has reassured its citizens that the new COVID-19 variant, Omicron, has not been discovered in Nigeria.
The Director-General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Dr Ifedayo Adetifa, disclosed this in a press statement and explained that the NCDC has prioritized sequencing of recently gathered samples from SARS-COV-2 positive travellers from every country, especially samples from countries that have already reported the Omicron variant.
To defeat the Omicron variant, Adetifa tasked every state to make sure that sample collection and testing are accessible so that travellers and individuals with symptoms or those that have been exposed to COVID-19 cases can get tested promptly.
According to the Director-General, no fewer than 126 genomes of Omicron have been detected globally but no deaths had been attached to the new variant yet.
Adetifa explained further that going by the high number of mutations present in the Omicron variant and the high rise in COVID-19 cases seen in South Africa, the virus was classified as highly transmissible and may also lead to an increased risk of reinfection compared to other variants.
However, the DG stated that the fears about the ability of Omicron to elude protective immune responses and being vaccine-resistant are just theoretical. He noted that the virus can still be discovered with existing Polymerase Chain Reaction tests.
He advised Nigerians to utilize the currently available opportunities to take vaccines, comply with public health and social measures which have been proven to prevent SARS-CoV-2 infection irrespective of the circulating variant.
