Africa-Press – Ethiopia. Ministry of Health announced today that the Ethiopian Public Health Institute has detected the presence of the COVID-19 Delta Variant in Ethiopia through laboratory diagnosis.
In her press briefing today, Health Minister Dr. Lia Tadesse confirmed the detection of the COVID-19 Delta Variant in the country.
“The Ethiopian Public Health Institute has detected the presence of the COVID-19 Delta Variant in Ethiopia last week through laboratory diagnosis.”
According to Lia, the positivity rate, severe cases and death from the pandemic is increasing in the country.
“The spread of the delta variant is double compared to the alpha variant. It exposes people to severe illness in short time spun especially for non-vaccinated people, and it’s more lethal than the previous ones,” she revealed.
The delta variant spares no age limit, Lia noted, calling the general public to adhere to the revised COVID-19 directive to prevent perilous spread of the COVID-19 and its delta variant which could both cause catastrophic consequence.
The positivity rate of the pandemic has currently reached about 20 percent, according to the minister.
She urged the general public and institutions to strictly adhere to the prevention guidelines and avoid risky public gatherings.
Some 2.5 million people have been vaccinated in Ethiopia and more vaccines are coming in, Lia pointed out, adding that 100, 000 vaccines were received yesterday and millions will follow in the coming few months.
The amount of vaccine compared to the country’s population is still limited, she observed.
The delta variant was first identified in October 2020 in India and then spread to more than 135 countries within few months.
