SOUTH African President Cyril Ramaphosa warned against the risk of “health apartheid” as he took aim at travel bans imposed on his country after it detected the new Omicron variant of Covid.
On a visit to Ivory Coast, he said the curbs, which many countries have also applied to countries across southern Africa, were “regrettable, unfair and unscientific”.
“Given that it was our own African scientists who first detected the Omicron variant, it is also a slap in the face of African excellence and expertise,” Ramaphosa said after meeting his Ivorian counterpart Alassane Ouattara.
“These bans will cause untold damage, in particular to travel and tourism industries that sustain businesses and livelihoods in South Africa and the southern African region.”
Meanwhile, the South African Centre for Epidemiological Modelling and Analysis along with National Institute of Communicable Diseases said latest findings “provide epidemiological evidence for Omicron’s ability to evade immunity from
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