THE country’s genome sequencing capacity will be further bolstered starting August, as the viral variants of concern (VOC) pose a threat to Malaysia’s recovery efforts. Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba said a consortium comprising several institutions would receive a RM3mil allocation to boost the country’s capacity in carrying out genome sequencing of Covid-19 samples. The consortium, he said, would aim to sequence 3,000 samples in three months. “We are doing this so that the portion of samples that are carried out for genome sequencing will exceed 1% of all positive cases,” he told the House in his Covid-19 briefing.