The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), on Wednesday, December 1, confirmed the first case of Omicron variant in Nigeria.

NCDC Director-General, Dr Ifedayo Adetifa, in a statement said in line with the routine travel test required of all international travellers and Genomic sequencing at the NCDC through Its National Reference Laboratory (NRL), Abuja, confirmed Nigeria’s first case of the Omicron variant, also known as the B.1.1.529 lineage.

The Omicron variant, a new strain of the coronavirus disease, was reported by South Africa and first detected in Botswana.

According to the statement, “In line with the routine travel tests required of all international travellers, genomic sequencing at the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control through its National Reference Laboratory, Abuja, confirms Nigeria’s first case of the Omicron variant.

Genomic sequencing of positive cases from routine day-two testing for travellers to Nigeria identified two cases of Omicron variant among travellers from South Africa who arrived in Nigeria last week.

Retrospective sequencing of previously confirmed cases among travellers to Nigeria also identified the Omicron variant among samples collected in October 2021.”

The NCDC however added that the two patients were asymptomatic and contact tracing had begun.