Uganda Reports First Omicron Cases - Health Ministry

Uganda has detected its first seven cases of infection with the Omicron strain of the coronavirus in people who arrived from other African countries, the Ugandan health ministry said on Tuesday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 07th December, 2021) Uganda has detected its first seven cases of infection with the Omicron strain of the coronavirus in people who arrived from other African countries, the Ugandan health ministry said on Tuesday.

"Uganda has confirmed 7 cases of the Omicron variant. 5 of these arrived from Nigeria while 2 arrived from South Africa. This was confirmed by the genomic surveillance that we have been carrying out at various points of entry and among the general population," the ministry said on Twitter.

All infected people were quarantined and none has developed severe COVID-19 symptoms yet, the ministry said.

The ministry called for citizens to remain calm and get vaccinated, as well as to continue adhering to sanitary measures introduced in the country.

On November 26, a World Health Organization emergency meeting designated Omicron as a "variant of concern." The first cases were reported by South Africa in late November and spread across the region, prompting new travel restrictions in other parts of the world.