Guidance for surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 variants: Interim guidance, 9 August 2021

Overview

This document aims to describe a minimum set of surveillance activities recommended at the national level to detect and monitor the relative prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 variants and outline a set of activities for the characterization and assessment of risk posed by these variants. A set of indicators is also provided to standardize monitoring and public reporting of variant circulation.

The document is primarily intended for national and sub-national public health authorities and partners who support implementation of surveillance for SARS-CoV-2 variants. It complements the interim guidance on Public health surveillance for COVID-19, which provides overall guidance for public health surveillance of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in humans. Additional guidance has been published for laboratory stakeholders on diagnostic testing for SARS-CoV-2 and sequencing for public health goals, alongside an implementation guide for SARS-CoV-2 sequencing.