Omicron could soon become dominant variant of Covid-19 in France: Adviser

French authorities on Thursday confirmed the first case of the Covid-19 Omicron variant on the mainland, a man in his 50s who recently returned from Nigeria.

The Omicron variant of coronavirus could become the dominant variant of Covid-19 in France by the end of January, the country's top scientific adviser warned on Thursday. France has already reported its first case of the new variant, being said to be more dangerous than the Delta strain.

Omicron variant of the coronavirus is deemed to be highly contagious and capable of undergoing frequent mutations.  (File Photo)

“We should see a progressive rise of the Omicron variant, which will take over from Delta, possibly by the end of January,” French government adviser Jean-Francois Delfraissy told BFM television, according to news agency Reuters.

The "true enemy" for now was still the Delta variant, spreading in a "fifth wave", he was further quoted as saying.

"Christmas is not at risk if the population and decision-makers are all very cautious," he said, emphasising that physical distancing and a booster shot of vaccines were key.

French authorities on Thursday confirmed the first case of the Covid-19 Omicron variant on the mainland, a man in his 50s who recently returned from Nigeria.

Omicron was first detected in South Africa in November and has spread to at least two dozen countries since. While much remains unknown about the new variant, South Africa's National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) said early epidemiological data suggested Omicron was able to evade some immunity, but existing vaccines should still protect against severe disease and death.

World Health Organisation (WHO) epidemiologist Maria van Kerkhove told a briefing that data should be available "within days" on Omicron's contagiousness.

Meanwhile, France is facing a fifth wave of Covid-19 since the pandemic emerged last year, and three hospitals in northeast France have implemented emergency protocols because beds are filling rapidly with Covid patients. Health minister Olivier Veran has warned that average daily cases are likely to surpass the peaks of the third wave that hit last spring, possibly as soon as this week.

(With agency inputs)