Omicron: Canada to ban travellers from Nigeria, Malawi and Egypt

Canada will ban travellers who have been to Nigeria, Malawi and Egypt over concerns about the spread of the Omicron coronavirus variant, the Toronto Star newspaper reported on Tuesday.

The country identified five people with the new variant, at least two of whom were recently in Nigeria.

The western province of Alberta detected at least one case of Omicron, a spokesman for Premier Jason Kenney told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

Last week, Ottawa barred travellers who had recently been to South Africa, Namibia, Lesotho, Botswana, Eswatini, Zimbabwe and Mozambique.

The premiers of Ontario and Quebec, Canada’s two most populous provinces are calling on Ottawa to impose tougher measures and more testing for the virus.

Reuters/Olajumoke Adeleke