New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Monday that coronavirus restrictions will be extended for another week in Auckland, but that they will be eased after that.
New Zealand has agreed on a November 10 opening date for retail establishments and institutions such as libraries and museums while it fights the spread of the contagious Delta strain of COVID-19, Ardern said at a news conference.
The city’s restriction on the number of individuals who can attend outdoor gatherings has been raised to 25.
Last year, New Zealand received worldwide accolades for its reaction to the coronavirus outbreak, but it has been unable to contain the current outbreak, forcing it to embrace a strategy of living with the virus rather than eliminating it.
Nonetheless, it has done significantly better than many other countries, with strict controls limiting COVID-19 infections to around 6,000 and only 28 deaths.
The number of daily cases has been rising to new highs in recent days, with 162 on Monday. There were 53 patients at the hospital, four of whom were in intensive care. According to a media-released model of the pandemic, cases are predicted to continue to rise.
However, Ardern said that high immunisation rates helped to keep hospital admissions low.
More than 75 percent of New Zealanders, or approximately 3.1 million people, have already received all doses of the vaccine, with 88 percent receiving only one.
However, the government claims that there is an increase in cases among the indigenous Maori group, whose vaccination rates are lower.
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