Morocco will halt all incoming air travel from across the world beginning on Monday in an attempt to prevent importation of cases of the Omicron COVID-19 variant.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Sunday announced the measure will be in effect for a period of two weeks.

The ministry, which noted the spread of Omicron in Africa and Europe, said the decision was taken to "preserve the achievements realised by Morocco in the fight against the pandemic, and to protect the health of citizens".

Last year, Morocco closed its borders closed for months due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Authorities had feared the country's health system would not be able to manage the surges of patients seen in Europe.

The Omicron variant, which is suspected to be more infectious than previous variants of the coronavirus, was first reported to the World Health Organization from South Africa on November 24.

The B.1.1.529 variant has been identified in some southern African countries, like South Africa and Botswana, and several European nations like the UK, Netherlands, Germany, Italy and Austria.

The emergence of the variant has prompted several nations such as the United States, Brazil, Canada, Australia and European Union nations to announce travel bans or restrictions on southern Africa.

Morocco has one of the highest numbers of confirmed coronavirus cases in Africa but also boasts one of the continent's highest rates of vaccination with 66 percent of its population having received at least one dose.

(With input from agencies)