There is no indication that the coronavirus variant identified in South Africa is more contagious than the one spreading in the UK, Reuters reports the World Health Organization's technical chief on COVID-19, Maria Van Kerkhove, to have said on Tuesday.

Both countries are battling a recent upsurge in new infections attributed to the new variants of coronavirus.

In response, the UK Prime Minister Bris Johnson re-imposed stricter measures while South African President Cyril Ramphosa has convened the National Coronavirus Command Council on Wednesday to strategize the country's response to the rising infections.

On Wednesday, the UK reported 60,916 new COVID-19 cases and a further 830 deaths from the last 24-hour period. This is the first time the country's number of new daily coronavirus cases surpassed the 60,000 mark since the pandemic began.

South Africa on the other hand remains the hardest hit African country by the pandemic, having registered 1,113,349 COVID-19 infections and 30,011 deaths, both more than double the numbers reported by the countries that have reported the second-highest caseload and fatalities.