When the first case of COVID-19 appeared in New Zealand on February 28, 2020, prime minister Jacinda Ardern quickly took decisive action. She first canceled two large upcoming gatherings: the national one-year anniversary remembrance of the Christchurch mosque shootings and an Auckland festival celebrating Pacific culture. Next she instituted strict visitor restrictions: anyone entering the country beginning on March 16 had to isolate themselves for 14 days. Even though New Zealand’s economy is heavily dependent on tourism (5.8% of GDP and 8.4% of employment in 2019) and trade (56.4% of GDP in 2018), Ardern closed New Zealand's borders to all non-citizens and non-permanent residents, beginning on March 21. This was followed by a complete nationwide lockdown on March 26 (except for essential services).
The first death in New Zealand did not occur until March 29. The pandemic peaked in early April, with 89 new cases recorded per day and with 929 active cases, and then receded. As of today (June 24), the whole country has only 11 active cases. There have been a total of only 22 deaths, the last occurring on May 28. On June 10, all restrictions were lifted except border control.
To achieve this feat, the government of New Zealand was very strict in enforcing the lockdown, immediately deporting foreign tourists who flouted self-quarantine restrictions and strictly policing the lockdown. But the country was also very generous, ensuring that its citizens were not devastated economically. The government allocated NZ$52 billion for emergency spending (equivalent to US$6,770 per person) and banned both no-cause evictions and rent increases for six months. NZ$27 million was allocated to social service non-profits, the government spent NZ$88 million to prepare a distance learning package including two education television channels, and all government ministers and public sector chief executives took a 20% pay cut to show solidarity and cut government costs. On May 1, the government passed a NZ$23 billion omnibus tax support package that includes a NZ$3 billion tax relief package for businesses, NZ$25 million for further business support in 2021, a $NZ10 billion wage subsidy scheme, NZ$4.27 billion to support 160,000 small businesses, and NZ$1.3 billion for 8,900 medium-sized businesses.
By maintaining a strict lockdown, but also providing enough economic support, the government was able to begin reducing restrictions on April 28 — just a month after the lockdown was imposed — and further reduce the restrictions on May 14, and finally reduce all restrictions except border control on June 10. Now intensive testing and contact tracing are being carried out to find anyone else with illness so those folks can be quarantined to prevent further spread.
Jacinda Ardern Says, ‘Thank You, New Zealand,’ as Country Crushes Coronavirus
… What this means is that life in New Zealand under alert level 1 will for the most part return to pre-Covid-19 standards with a few exceptions, largely related to border closures and contact tracing. People can once again go to the bar or go out to eat after work without having to worry about where they sit. Groups of any size are allowed to gather for public and private events, while public transportation and domestic travel are once again fully open and operational. ...
Throughout their lockdown, Prime Minister Ardern provided daily briefings in which she clearly described exactly what was happening and what would happen next. She also was empathetic and provided comfort for those locked down:
How New Zealand’s ‘eliminate’ strategy brought new coronavirus cases down to zero
… Christine Nam, a 31-year-old from capital city Wellington, told CNBC all communication from the government had been clear, concise, and based on scientific fact.
“I always understood the importance of complying,” she said. “The government was really good at managing people’s expectations — we were told it would take at least two weeks for signs that the lockdown was having an impact on the numbers. This made the purpose of the lockdown easy to understand and accept.” ...
How New Zealand beat the coronavirus
… she [Ardern] was resolute and confident, emotional and pragmatic. The messages she reiterated in daily press conferences have turned into catchphrases. “Stay home.” “Be kind.” “We must go hard, and we must go early.” ...
Ardern's online messages keep spirits up in New Zealand's coronavirus lockdown
Hours after New Zealand imposed a nationwide lockdown to beat a coronavirus pandemic, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern took to Facebook, livestreaming in a sweater from bed, to “check in” on citizens and tell them of the day’s events.
Ardern’s news conferences for more than 30 minutes a day, taking queries, streaming Facebook videos and posting pictures on Instagram, offer a contrast with some world leaders who have stumbled through confusing briefings about virus combat plans.
“I thought I would jump online quickly and check in with everyone...as we all prepare to hunker down for a few weeks,” she said in one of her social media messages, seen and cheered by millions in lockdown.
“This feels like the comfort of being tucked into bed at night by my mum,” said a viewer who responded to the post. “Thanks for checking in with us.” …
Ardern’s excellent leadership stands in stark contrast with what we have from President Trump:
New Zealand only has a population of about 5 million — only 1/66th as much as the U.S. population of 330 million. If we multiply NZ’s 22 COVID-19 deaths by 66 it would be equivalent to 1,452 American deaths. The death toll in the United States currently stands at about 123,000 and is continuing to rise by about 600 every day.
New Zealand has virtually eliminated COVID-19 while the United States continues to have an increasing number of active cases. Adjusted by population, the United States currently has 90.7 new confirmed cases per 1 million population (averaged over the last 7 days). The equivalent figure for New Zealand is 0.2 (that orange line at the bottom of the graph below) and their rate has been at this level for the past 50 days.