The World Well being Group on Sunday urged nations all over the world to not impose flight bans on southern African nations attributable to considerations over the brand new COVID-19 omicron variant.
WHO’s regional director for Africa, Matshidiso Moeti, known as on nations to observe science and worldwide well being rules as a way to keep away from utilizing journey restrictions.
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“Journey restrictions could play a job in barely decreasing the unfold of COVID-19 however place a heavy burden on lives and livelihoods,” Moeti mentioned in an announcement. “If restrictions are applied, they shouldn’t be unnecessarily invasive or intrusive, and must be scientifically based mostly, in keeping with the Worldwide Well being Laws, which is a legally binding instrument of worldwide legislation acknowledged by over 190 nations.”
Moeti praised South Africa for following worldwide well being rules and informing WHO as quickly as its nationwide laboratory recognized the omicron variant.
“The pace and transparency of the South African and Botswana governments in informing the world of the brand new variant is to be counseled,” mentioned Moeti. “WHO stands with African nations which had the braveness to boldly share life-saving public well being info, serving to defend the world towards the unfold of COVID-19.”
Circumstances of the omicron variant of the coronavirus popped up in nations on reverse sides of the world Sunday and lots of governments rushed to shut their borders whilst scientists cautioned that it’s not clear if the brand new variant is extra alarming than different variations of the virus.
Whereas investigations proceed into the omicron variant, WHO recommends that every one nations “take a risk-based and scientific method and put in place measures which may restrict its attainable unfold.”
Dr. Francis Collins, director of the Nationwide Institutes of Well being in the USA, emphasised that there isn’t any knowledge but that implies the brand new variant causes extra critical sickness than earlier COVID-19 variants.
“I do suppose it’s extra contagious, if you take a look at how quickly it unfold by way of a number of districts in South Africa,” Collins mentioned on CNN’s “State of the Union.”
Israel determined to bar entry to foreigners, and Morocco mentioned it might droop all incoming flights for 2 weeks beginning Monday _ among the many most drastic of a rising raft of journey curbs being imposed as nations scrambled to sluggish the variant’s unfold. Scientists in a number of locations _ from Hong Kong to Europe _ have confirmed its presence. The Netherlands reported 13 omicron circumstances on Sunday, and Australia discovered two.
The U.S. plans to ban journey from South Africa and 7 different southern African nations beginning Monday.
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“With the omicron variant now detected in a number of areas of the world, putting in journey bans that focus on Africa assaults world solidarity,” mentioned Moeti. “COVID-19 consistently exploits our divisions. We’ll solely get the higher of the virus if we work collectively for options.”
WHO mentioned it scaling up its assist for genomic sequencing in Africa so sequencing laboratories have entry to enough human sources and testing reagents to work at full capability. WHO additionally mentioned is able to provide further assist, reinforcing COVID-19 responses together with surveillance, remedy, an infection prevention and neighborhood engagement in southern African nations, it mentioned.
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