Download
WHO provides 3,360 COVID-19 test kits to Uganda for genotyping of variants of concern
CGTN

Translating...

Content is automatically generated by Microsoft Azure Translator Text API. CGTN is not responsible for any of the translations.

Blood samples to be tested for COVID-19./CFP

Blood samples to be tested for COVID-19./CFP

The World Health Organization (WHO) has provided Uganda with 3,360 test kits for the genotyping of COVID-19 variants of concern.

The provision comes days after the East African country confirmed that it had detected cases of the new Omicron variant, which has now spread to nearly 60 countries globally.

"Highly operational, these kits offer a triple benefit in preventing and limiting the spread of Omicron and other variants of concern. They will allow rapid identification of the highly transmissible delta variant, screen for Omicron, and help in prioritizing specimens for genomic sequencing," said Dr Yonas Tegegn Woldemariam, WHO Representative in Uganda.

On her part Uganda's health minister Jane Ruth Aceng thanked the WHO for the kits, noting that they would bolster her country's ability to detect the variants.

"These PCR screening assay kits procured by WHO is a boost to the county's existing capacity to identify the predominant Delta variant and indicate the presence of Omicron, the new COVID-19 variant of concern," she said.

The Omicron variant was first detected in South Africa from a specimen collected on 9 November 2021, with the variant first reported to WHO on 24 November 2021.

With its confirmation in Uganda, the country's government has heightened surveillance in efforts to contain further spread.

Aceng noted that "samples from individuals that test positive to COVID-19 will be subjected to genomic sequencing. This will enable laboratories to search for the presence of the Omicron variant or any other variant that may develop in the country."

Search Trends