These Are PM Jacinda Ardern's Requirements To Lift The COVID-19 Lockdown In New Zealand

JAKARTA - New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Thursday her country is targeting a COVID-19 vaccination rate of up to 90 percent to end its strict lockdown.

New Zealand managed to contain COVID-19 last year, with most of it remaining virus-free until an outbreak of the highly contagious Delta variant, which began to spread last August, led to a nationwide lockdown.

With her biggest city Auckland still under lockdown and new cases being reported every day, PM Ardern said vaccination would replace the lockdown as the main tool against the virus, allowing authorities to isolate only those infected.

"If those (vaccination) levels are high enough, then we will be able to move away from the lockdown as a tool", he said.

"The highest possible vaccine level will provide the most freedom", said PM Ardern, adding the country should aim for a vaccination rate of 90 percent plus.

After the initial slow progress of the Kiwi State COVID-19 vaccination program, currently, around 40 percent of New Zealand adults have been fully vaccinated and around 75 percent have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.

New Zealand authorities reported 15 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, all in Auckland, bringing the total number of cases in the current outbreak to 1,123.

Meanwhile, Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield warned earlier this week that New Zealand may not reach zero COVID cases again.