The director of the Center for Response to Epidemics and Innovation in South Africa, Brazilian Túlio de Oliveira, demanded that Brazil help Africa face the omicron variant of covid-19 and not limit itself to restricting flights from the continent.
The scientist claimed to CNN that bans on flights to South Africa could affect the receipt of inputs needed to continue decoding the new variant.
“Africa lags behind the world in access to vaccine. Promises and even purchases made by the countries were not fulfilled”, said Oliveira. “China has promised 1 billion doses and is part of the Brics, like Brazil. And the country’s focus is just on interrupting the flow of planes”.
He pointed out that CERI, for the second time, identifies a variant of covid-19. The other, known as beta, first appeared at the end of last year.
“We are helping the world, with research that shows a new variant and giving the planet the chance to prepare in advance. And what do we get back? Closed doors”, he complained, who has been trying to make articulations with laboratories and biotechnology companies to try to contain the effects of the interruption of flights on research.
The scientist made it clear that it is not yet possible to say that it is a variant that emerged in South Africa, despite having been identified in large circulation in Johannesburg, the city of the African country where the continent’s largest airport is located.
“It was identified there, but it could have originated anywhere in the world. What we don’t need is another discriminatory response for Africa”, he declared.
In his assessment, countries are not worried about the economic impact that the cancellation of flights will bring to the continent.
“Everything that comes here, to the laboratory, comes by plane, because we are in the extreme south of the continent. Reagents, personal protective equipment, medicines. Flights are fundamental for the African economy, this blockade will have a very big impact on us,” he said.
Anvisa defends suspension of flights
This Tuesday (30) two cases of the new variant were identified in Brazil. In an interview with CNN last Friday (26) the CEO of the Agency, Antonio Barra Torres, stated that borders should be closed to countries where this variant was first identified.
“Countries like Italy, Germany and Japan adopted the same measure, especially at this initial moment when we have more uncertainties than certainties. What we have is that in the place where this variant was discovered there was an exponential increase in cases”, he said.
For the epidemiologist Ethel Maciel, from the Federal University of Espírito Santo, the restriction of flights is important, but it cannot be the only measure for the moment. It is important to protect borders at this time of uncertainty and expand here what we do not do well, which is genomic analysis.
The most important thing, however, is to demand vaccination and a negative test from those who arrive, as the variant may be in other countries that we do not restrict.
Túlio de Oliveira, however, believes that the measure to suspend flights is ineffective. He recalls that at the beginning of the pandemic, the United States cut ties with China, where the virus that causes covid-19 was identified for the first time, but even so, the country had the most cases and deaths from the disease.
“It’s a pandemic. For a year and a half we have been saying that new variants will emerge until vaccination progresses evenly throughout the world”, he reinforced.
In addition to leading the group of researchers that identified the omicron variant, Túlio is now working to understand whether it can escape the immunity offered by vaccines against covid-19 and whether it can be more lethal.
He has used social media to urge companies and governments not to leave southern African countries. He says that the number of immunizers made available by the Covax Facility, a global consortium to make vaccines available, fell short of what was promised.
“Botswana, for example, bought doses of the vaccine from Moderna that haven’t arrived yet. What we feel is that there is discrimination with Africa, in general”, he said.
CNN questioned the Covax Facility consortium about the reduced number of immunizations made available to Africa, the pharmaceutical company Moderna (about the failure to send doses purchased by Botswana) and the Brazilian government about possible aid to be provided by the country and is still awaiting an answer.
Reference: CNN Brasil
