Omicron travel ban on African countries a disgraceful apartheid - AfCFTA Secretary-General

Omicron variants detected in some African countries including Ghana

This is modern-day neo-colonialism, Wamkele Mene on African counties travel ban

Ghana records case of Omicron variant

Secretary-General of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), Wamkele Mene, has described the

Read full articleban of some African countries after it recorded the omicron variant of COVID-19 as a disgraceful apartheid.

He further indicated that the developed world are practising modern-day neo-colonialism.

According to Wamkele Mene, these foreign counties took the decision because the affected countries are Africans.

The United States of America, United Kingdom and EU have barred travellers from South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Lesotho, Eswatini, Egypt, Mozambique, Malawi and Nigeria from entering their countries following the discovery of the Omicron variant of COVID-19.

Reacting to this directive at the third edition of the Kusi Ideas Festival in Accra, Wamkele Mene said, “It is an absolute disgrace that in Holland, two or three weeks before the detection by South Africa and Botswana that evidence suggests that Dutch scientists were aware that there is a variant and yet did not disclose this information to the international community.”

“It is equally shameful and disgraceful that many in Europe were very quick to ban, restrict, travel from African countries when, in fact, it is now known that many more countries around the world have more cases of the Omicron variant than Namibia, Zimbabwe, Zambia Botswana than many other countries that have been banned who had zero cases of the Omicron variant...this is modern-day neo-colonialism, this is disgraceful apartheid… today these restrictions are imposed because we are Africans,” he stated.

He said other countries that have recorded several cases of the Omicron variant do not have travel restrictions imposed on them.

Meanwhile, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is worried Ghana may be added to the list of countries banned from international travels following the detection of the Omicron variant in the country.

The Ghana Health Service (GHS) last week announced that a case of the variant has been detected in Ghana.

The Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research subsequently said it has detected 34 cases of the variant in sequenced samples that were taken from 120 returning travellers.

The GHS has since assured the public of robust testing at the Kotoka International Airpot to curb the spread.