The Omicron variant and travel bans are hurting southern Africa

SOUTH AFRICA had a rotten 2021. Corrupt politicians plundered covid-19 relief funds, deadly riots took more than 330 lives and rolling power cuts hobbled the economy. Yet South African scientists have deservedly won praise this year. It was local virologists and epidemiologists who had honed their skills studying another virus, HIV, who discovered the new Omicron variant of covid. When cases spiked unexpectedly, they studied samples, determined that it was a new and worrying variant and—most important—shared their findings immediately.