Namibia detects Omicron variant

Vials with Pfizer-BioNTech and AstraZeneca COVID 19 vaccine labels are seen in this illustration picture taken March 19, 2021. REUTERS Dado Ruvic Illustration

WINDHOEK, December 6, Reuters -- Namibia detected the Omicron coronavirus variant in 18 of 19 samples sequenced between Nov. 11 -- 26 its health ministry said on Monday.

Although the southern African country has sequenced relatively few samples, the finding suggests that the variant first flagged by South Africa and Botswana last month, and since being labelled of concern by the World Health Organization, is also highly prevalent in Namibia.

Namibia's Omicron cases were mainly detected in and around the capital Windhoek, a region that had 536 out of 695 new infections countrywide in the first five days of December.

The Delta strain was the other non-Omicron sample sequenced among the 19.

Scientists in South Africa and other countries are trying to determine whether or not Omicron is more contagious, causes more severe disease and is more resistant to existing vaccines.

Namibia's health ministry said in a statement that we must remain on guard while we wait for further investigation about this variant.

Namibia had been on high alert for Omicron after it was identified in two people in Japan and the Czech Republic who had a history of travel to Namibia.

Namibia, which has fully vaccinated only around 318,000 people in its 2.5 million population, warned last month that over 268,000 doses of AstraZeneca AZN.L and Pfizer PFE.N COVID 19 vaccines were at risk of being destroyed due to slow uptake.