ICT and National Guidance Minister, Dr Chris Baryomunsi has assured the nation that the outbreak of Omicron COVID-19 variant in Uganda will not change Government plan to reopen all education institutions in January, 2022.
On Tuesday this week, Uganda confirmed seven cases of the new Omicron variant. Five of the cases came in from Nigeria, and 2 from South Africa.
The public has been worried as to whether Government is going to announce a new lockdown and postpone re-opening of schools slated for January next year.
Addressing a news conference in Kampala on Friday, Minister Baryomunsi gave assurance to the public that Government has no plans of imposing another lockdown, or postpone school reopening.
“As of now, we don’t have any information with evidential value for us to change the school calendar, or announce drastic restrictions. But we call upon Ugandans to continue observing public health measures, and most importantly to go for vaccination, and ensure you complete your dose of vaccine,” he said.
The Government, Baryomunsi said, is still studying the behavior of the variant, adding that the information so far gathered, seems to suggest that the variant spreads very fast, but seems not to be having deadly symptoms.
“Majority of the cases of Omicron are asymptomatic. They are not seriously sick. So, the information we pick is that it is a new variant with many mutations, spreading very fast but less severe than delta [variant] or other variants. It seems not to cause severe disease,” he said.
The variant does not have characteristics of vaccine escape, meaning that it spreads fast in people who are not vaccinated against COVID-19.
“Majority of people with it are unvaccinated. So, our message is that let us embrace vaccination. Let us go for vaccines. Let us observe SOPs. Then we shall be able to contain Omicron and other variants,” said Baryomunsi.
Omicron was first detected in South Africa last month, and quickly spread to 7 other Southern African countries that included: Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique and Malawi.
Many Western countries such as the United States, UK, European Union, Canada among others, banned non citizens from the seven Southern African countries from entering their countries.
Baryomunsi said that although it is measure to prevent the importation of the Omicron variant, Uganda will not impose travel restrictions from countries that have confirmed cases of Omicron variant.
“We have not banned travellers like other countries have done; the measures are not backed by strong science. We feel it is not necessary to ban travellers, but we shall strengthen our internal systems to manage all cases of COVID-19, as we study this COVID-19 variant of Omicron,” he said.
The Minister, however, said that Government will continue to strengthen surveillance at Entebbe International Airport and all land borders of Uganda to ensure that every incoming traveler is subjected to mandatory COVID-19 testing.
“From the President to an ordinary person; if you are coming into the country, we test you,” he said.
On average, 6 incoming travelers test positive for COVID-19 at Entebbe International Airport per day.
Government announced that every case that tests positive for COVID-19, will be subjected to genomic sequencing (further examination) to establish whether it is Omicron variant.
