Coronavirus

He said the Government has preparations in place to deploy a rapid response to the new threat, drawing from lessons learned during the recent spread of the Delta variant around the country.

While scientists continue their investigation into the new variant, the Controller Manning said people around the world must be patient and ready to respond.

The pair travelled to Fiji from Nigeria on November 25.

They both tested positive to Covid-19 while in a border quarantine facility.

Health Secretary James Fong said last night their samples were sent to a reference laboratory in Australia for urgent genomic sequencing.

Dr Fong said both travellers' results were confirmed positive for the Omicron variant.

As more countries around the world report cases of Omicron, much remains unknown about the new Covid-19 variant.

It is less than two weeks since Omicron was designated a "variant of concern" by the World Health Organisation, after it was first reported by scientists in South Africa.

The company, based at Motukea Island outside of Port Moresby has been in operation since 2010 and runs a plant managed and operated by an all national staff.

Managing Director of Motukea Gas, Richard Foo said as a company that loves the country of Papua New Guinea and it's people, it was only right that they give back.

"Our plant is capable of producing 400 cylinders of 47ltr medical oxygen in 24hours. All manufactured locally here at Motukea.

Scientists have detected a surge in the number of people catching Covid-19 multiple times.

It is a rapid analysis and not definitive, but fits with concern about the mutations the variant possesses.

It is also unclear what this means for the protection given by vaccines.

A week after the variant was named Omicron, the world is still scrambling to understand the true threat posed by the variant. But now the first of pieces of a large and complex puzzle are starting to be assembled.

Health Secretary Dr James Fong confirmed the cases of interest were Fijian nationals returning from Africa.

"In Fiji, we currently have Covid-positive travellers in quarantine who arrived in the country from African states before we knew about Omicron.

"They have been quarantined in line with the stringent measures we apply to countries we consider a red zone for ongoing viral spread. Their specimens will be forwarded this week overseas for genetic sequencing."

The men, who are 66 years and 46 years old, are currently under observation, a government spokesperson said.

These are the first cases of the new Omicron variant to be reported in India.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that Omicron poses a "high infection risk".

Officials said all primary contacts and secondary contacts of the two men have been traced and are being tested as well.

Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said yesterday he expected advice from Medsafe in a couple of weeks and the rollout should start in late January.

But some are urging officials to move faster as a number of schools shut down for days because of infected students or staff.

Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield said while there were no plans at this stage to bring the timeframe forward, it was still under advice.

Mr Manning said the Government has preparations in place to deploy a rapid response to the new threat, drawing from lessons learned during the recent spread of the Delta variant around the country.

While scientists continue their investigation into the new variant, the Controller said people around the country must be patient and ready to respond.

Integral to this is frequent handwashing and good hygiene practice but it requires sufficient access to clean water supply and proper sanitation facilities.

Therefore, investment in Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WaSH) should be prioritized to ensure healthy livelihood and sustainable progress amid the challenges inflicted by the pandemic at this time.