The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has confirmed the first cases of the Omicron variant in the country.

The agency stated this in a statement on Wednesday morning signed by its Director-General, Dr Ifedayo Adetifa.

The Omicron variant, a new strain of the coronavirus disease, was reported by South Africa and first detected in Botswana.

The NCDC said it had discovered two cases of the Omicron variant linked to passengers from South Africa.

Similarly, the government of Canada had also stated that it discovered two cases of the variant from two passengers from Nigeria. The Federal Government through the Presidential Steering Committee on COVID-19, however, said that it was investigating the issue to get more details.

“In line with the routine travel tests required of all international travellers and genomic sequencing at the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control through its National Reference Laboratory, Abuja, confirms Nigeria’s first case of the Omicron variant. Genomic sequencing of positive cases from routine day two testing for travellers to Nigeria identified two cases of Omicron variant among travellers from South Africa who arrived in Nigeria last week.

“Retrospective sequencing of previously confirmed cases among travellers to Nigeria also identified the Omicron variant among samples collected in October 2021″, the statement reads in part.

The NCDC added that it had begun contact tracing even though the two passengers were asymptomatic