COVID: Traveller ‘who visited Nigeria’ tests positive for Omicron variant in France

France mainland has reported its first two cases of the Omicron COVID-19 variant.

The health body for the Ile de France region of Greater Paris, in a statement on Thursday, said an Omicron case was detected in a person who returned from Nigeria.

According to the statement, the traveller is between 50 and 60 years old,  and he tested positive for COVID on November 25 after arriving France, after which sequencing showed on Wednesday that he was infected with the Omicron variant.

“The Ile-de-France Regional Health Agency (ARS) was informed on Wednesday 1 December of a positive result by sequencing of the Omicron variant, in a person residing in the region, screened on his return from a trip to Nigeria. The entourage was tested and placed in solitary confinement,” the statement reads.

“A traveler residing in Seine et Marne tested positive for Covid when he got off the plane on November 25, returning from a stay in Nigeria. The sample sequencing revealed Wednesday 1st December that this person was a carrier of Omicron variant. This is a man between 50 and 60 years old who was not showing symptoms at the time of the test.

“His wife, who accompanied him on this trip, has also tested positive for COVID: sequencing is underway to verify if it is the Omicron variant. Both have remained in isolation at their home since their arrival in the territory given the positive result for COVID.

“A third person living under the same roof was tested on December 2 to determine if they were infected and, if so, if they were a carrier of the variant. None of the three people are vaccinated.”

According to Reuters, another case was later found in the Haut-Rhin region in eastern France in a person who returned from South Africa.

These cases were the first found in mainland France, following an earlier case reported in the French Indian Ocean island of La Reunion in November.

Omicron — identified as a “variant of concern” — was recently detected by South African authorities.

According to the WHO, at least 23 countries have recorded cases of the Omicron variant. Some of these countries are the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Denmark, Belgium, Botswana, India, Israel, Australia and Hong Kong.

On Wednesday, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) announced the discovery of three cases of the Omicron COVID variant in Nigeria in individuals with history of travel to South Africa.