Press Release - The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) wishes to raise awareness of Member States regarding the new variant of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, which was reported in South Africa and the United Kingdom over the past week. Africa CDC is closely following up with authorities in South Africa, where the variant was first identified in Nelson Mandela Bay and has rapidly spread through the Eastern and Western Capes, as well as KwaZulu-Natal.