Doctors raise alarm over new Covid-19 variant in Kenya

Doctors are raising an alarm over a surge in respiratory infections in the country, with some health experts attributing this to a resurgence of COVID-19.

Kenya identified an offshoot of the Omicron variant, designated JN.1, and also detected the swine flu influenza virus in surveillance data from positive COVID samples collected across the 14 counties in the Lake Region Economic Bloc.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has classified the JN.1  strain as a "variant of interest" since it can evade the immune system and transmit more easily than other currently circulating variants.

WHO has however said that current vaccines will continue to protect against severe disease and death from JN.1 and other circulating variants of the COVID-19 virus.

Dr Shem Otoi, a COVID-19 waves modelling expert, spoke to Citizen TV on recommendations for the public regarding behavior changes to mitigate the risk of contracting or spreading this variant.