As different African countries continue to report new cases of the Omicron COVID-19, the African Union (AU) has warned that travel and entry bans in connection with the virus will limit the free movement of people and goods.
This was made known in a statement issued by the 55-member pan African bloc.
According to the union, it is imposing immediate and significant impact on African countries.
The union also called for the urgent rescinding of travel bans placed on African countries following the detection of the Omicron variant.
“Current evidence, which underscores global spread and community transmission of the Omicron variant, does not support selective travel bans imposed on Southern African countries.
“Penalising African countries for ensuring timely and transparent data dissemination in accordance with international health regulations acts is potentially posing a threat to health security on the continent and globally.’’
The AU stressed that recent travel and entry bans are imposing an adverse impact on the economy which will negatively affect the lives and livelihoods of populations concerned.
Not leaving any stone unturned, the union added that the travel ban created limited the capacity to access essential medical supplies needed to respond to the ongoing upsurge of cases.
South Africa and Botswana were also commended for their effective genomic surveillance systems led to early detection of the Omicron variant on the continent.
Scientists and public health authorities in both member states were praised for their timely and transparent data sharing to alert the international community.
Though the union stated that more time and investigations are needed to adequately assess the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of the Omicron variant.
The AU underscored the urgent need to strengthen public health and social measures to mitigate the risk of infections.