Five Reasons for New Zealand’s Success in Controlling Coronavirus
The Prime Minister of New Zealand announced that the spread of coronavirus in the country has been halted. New Zealand is among the countries that have recorded the lowest death toll from COVID-19. What factors enabled New Zealand to successfully contain this pandemic?
Jacinda Ardern, Prime Minister of New Zealand, said in an interview that she danced with joy after hearing the news that the last COVID-19 patient in the country had recovered.
COVID-19 is an infectious disease caused by coronavirus infection. New Zealand is considered one of the world’s most successful countries in managing the coronavirus pandemic. Data from the American Johns Hopkins University shows that New Zealand has recorded a total of 1,504 cases of COVID-19 and only 22 deaths from the disease.
In comparison to this number of patients in New Zealand, we can point to Ireland, which with a population similar to New Zealand (approximately five million people) has had more than 25,000 cases of COVID-19 and 1,679 deaths to date.
A look at five reasons for New Zealand’s success:
Swift and Strict Quarantine
The Prime Minister of New Zealand announced at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic outbreak that it was necessary to “act swiftly and strictly” to deal with the situation. On March 25 (the 15th of March), when 100 cases of COVID-19 had been recorded in New Zealand and no deaths had occurred yet, the country closed its borders to foreign travelers and sent its returning citizens to a two-week quarantine.
Two days after this date, the New Zealand government declared a complete lockdown in the country; a measure that, according to internationally established criteria for dealing with pandemics, was considered very strict. From that date onward, only grocery stores, pharmacies, and hospitals were allowed to operate.
In the country, urban traffic and vehicle movement were restricted, and social interactions were limited to family relationships. These severe restrictions lasted for one month and then gradually decreased. Currently, all social restrictions and economic activities have been lifted there, with only border restrictions remaining in place.
Oksana Pizhik, a professor of pharmacy at University College London, told Deutsche Welle that “the New Zealand government’s measures at the beginning of the pandemic were very effective and prevented further spread of the virus.” She emphasizes: “New Zealand made good use of the valuable time that other countries wasted.”
Effective Communication with the Public
Shortly before introducing its strict measures, the New Zealand government sent a written message to its citizens stating: “This message is for all New Zealand citizens. We depend on you. Tonight, wherever you are, you must stay there… Government restrictions may continue for several weeks.”
As the number of patients increased, the Prime Minister of New Zealand clarified his approach to dealing with the pandemic, and on April 6 in a speech to the citizens of the country, he said: “We have an opportunity to achieve a success that no country has yet achieved, that is, to eliminate this virus from the country.”
One citizen of the country told the CNBC television network: “The government managed public expectations very well. We were told it would take two weeks to see the impact of quarantine on the numbers. This made the quarantine easy to understand and acceptable to the people.”
Oksana Pizhik also believes that the government communicated its message correctly to the public. This scientific expert told Deutsche Welle: “Continuously sending messages about health priorities, holding daily press conferences, and directly addressing the community, especially children, drew attention and gained public cooperation.”
Increasing the Capacity of Coronavirus Testing Laboratories
The Prime Minister of New Zealand announced last week that his country can conduct more than eight thousand coronavirus tests per day. This figure, compared to New Zealand’s population, represents one of the highest laboratory testing capacities in the world. New Zealand has tested a total of approximately 295,000 people so far.
Shaun Hendy, head of the scientific center (Te Punaha Matatini) that advises the New Zealand government on controlling coronavirus, told the Axios website that strict quarantine measures in New Zealand made it possible to identify infected individuals and trace their contacts.
Pizhik agrees with this conclusion and says: “Extensive testing and tracing of infected individuals, in accordance with World Health Organization recommendations, played a key role in keeping the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths limited.”
Population and Geographic Advantages
The fact that New Zealand is an island nation has helped in successfully containing the coronavirus. Border control for this country was simpler than for countries with long land borders. Low population density was also another major advantage. Coronavirus is transmitted from person to person, and the more dispersed the population, the slower the disease spreads.
Properly Following Pandemic Control Guidelines
The New Zealand government implemented the best guidelines for fighting the new coronavirus. Pizhik says: “Finding suspected cases, conducting tests, caring for and treating each infected case, and tracing and quarantining related individuals form the basis of a correct response in pandemic conditions.”
The halt of coronavirus transmission in New Zealand means that the country can resume its economic activities. The Prime Minister of New Zealand said that economic activities in the country will resume at 3.8 percent below normal capacity.
