New Variant of Covid-19 'Is Driving South Africa's Second Wave'
A new variant of the Sars-CoV-2 virus, which causes Covid-19, has been detected in South Africa, scientists have announced. Health Minister Zweli Mkhize and members of the country's Ministerial Advisory Committee on Covid-19 held a press briefing in which they described a new variant of the virus, known as 501.V2, and said it was fuelling South Africa's second wave of Covid-19 infections. A group of mutated viruses was discovered in Eastern Cape, Western Cape and KwaZulu-Natal provinces by the Network for Genomics Surveillance in South Africa. The minister said the findings had been shared with the World Health Organization and the scientific community at large. He said the mutation was a cause for concern, but there was no reason to panic. Professor Salim Abdool-Karim, who co-chairs the advisory committee, said the new variant appeared to be more potent and transmissible, "although it is unclear whether it will cause higher mortality rates or more severe illness". A new variant of the virus has also appeared in the United Kingdom, prompting many countries to ban travel from that country, but the two variations are not the same, according to the South African National Institute for Communicable Diseases. As of December 23, the UK has banned travel from South Africa.
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Africa:
Statement on New SARS-CoV-2 Variant with Multiple Spike Protein Mutations
Africa CDC, 21 December 2020
The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) wishes to raise awareness of Member States regarding the new variant of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes… Read more »
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South Africa:
Britain Bars Travel From South Africa After New Covid-19 Variant Detected
RFI, 23 December 2020
Health chiefs in Britain have banned travel from South Africa after two cases of a new variant of coronavirus were detected in the country. Read more »
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South Africa:
New Covid-19 Variants Under the Microscope
UN News, 21 December 2020
The UN health agency chief said on Monday that scientists have been working to understand new COVID-19 variants that have been reported in South Africa and the United Kingdom. Read more »
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South Africa:
New Covid-19 Variant Confirmed in South Africa
East African, 19 December 2020
A new variant (lineage) of the Sars-CoV-2 virus, which causes the coronavirus disease, has been detected in South Africa, scientists have announced. Read more »
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Africa:
Coronavirus New Variant - Genomics Researcher Answers Key Questions
The Conversation Africa, 20 December 2020
A new variant of SARS-CoV-2, the virus which causes COVID-19, is thought to be driving increased transmission of the disease in parts of the UK. The government has placed some… Read more »
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Covid-19 statistics in South Africa, December 20, 2020
InFocus
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South Africa's top adviser on Covid-19, Professor Salim Abdool Karim - along with his U.S. counterpart Dr. Anthony Fauci - has been awarded a prize for 'standing up for science' ... Read more »
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South African president Cyril Ramaphosa has announced an 11pm curfew, restricted hours on the sale of alcohol and the closure of some beaches. The new regulations aim to curb a ... Read more »