President Cyril Ramaphosa stated that the identification of new variant coincides with the rise of new Covid-19 infections
Cyril Ramaphosa, South African President has suspected the possibility of a fourth wave of coronavirus pandemic in the country due to the spread of the new variant, Omicron, in South Africa.
The South African President mentioned that the country has recorded 1,600 new infections in a week which is higher than the regular record of 275-500 infections per week. The sudden rise of infection is attributed to the spread of Omicron variant found especially in Gauteng, now spreading across all provinces.
For the uninitiated, only 35 per cent of the adult African population has been vaccinated till date and despite the alarms of the rising infection, there is still hesitation. President Ramaphosa, along with a task force, is in discussion to make vaccines mandatory to access public places like transportation, attending public events, workplaces and others.
It has been reported that to minimize the impact of the new Omicron variant, which may lead to a fourth wave, and to restore social freedom and economy to its full operation and resume travel and vulnerable sectors like hospitality and tourism, vaccination is vital.
The Covid-19 virus, just like every other virus, can form new variants and mutate into more several forms if the population remains unvaccinated, quoted the President.
To vaccinate the entire adult African population, South Africa has joined the race like all other countries and organizations throughout the world for equal access to vaccinations for everyone.
Ramaphosa added that unequal vaccine distribution not just costs lives in countries that are denied access to vaccines, but it also hampers the global efforts to overcome the pandemic.
The new mutation’s emergence should be a wakeup call for the world regarding vaccine inequality, he mentioned.