Omicron Deals Another Blow to South Africa’s Struggling Economy

The onslaught of Omicron-related travel bans will devastate South Africa’s tourism industry, increasing inequality levels and social resistance to President Cyril Ramaphosa’s economic policy agenda. The European Union and more than a dozen countries around the world -- including the United States, the United Kingdom and Israel and several EU members -- have banned flights from South Africa and neighboring states upon the discovery of a new COVID-19 strain, which the World Health Organization has named Omicron. On Nov. 26, two days after South African health officials released details of the variant, the South African rand fell to 16.4 against the U.S. dollar on Nov. 26. While the rand has since slightly rebounded to trade at 16.2 per U.S. dollar, the currency remains low and in flux as worries over the strain linger. Ramaphosa condemned the countries that have implemented travel bans for failing to uphold commitments to economic recovery...