As we write this the number of coronavirus cases worldwide has reached 7,357,243. We have lost 414,476 lives because of COVID-19 and fortunately, 3,630,898 people have recovered this contagious illness. Most countries are under lockdown and some have lifted the stay-at-home orders. But the numbers in maximum countries are high and counting. On Monday, New Zealand declared that it has no more coronavirus cases and the disease has been eliminated from the country. The last known infected person has recovered and for 17 days they haven't reported a new coronavirus case. How New Zealand Defeated COVID-19: Timeline of The Kiwi Battle to Eliminate Coronavirus and Role Played by Jacinda Ardern.
This news came as a respite amid the back to back bad news coming up. A total of 1,500 people contracted coronavirus in New Zealand out of which 22 could not be saved but the rest have recovered. About 40,000 people have been tested additionally. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said despite the good news the border controls would not be lifted while the country is all set to roll back all containment measures. However, New Zealand is not alone, here are other countries that have become coronavirus-free:
Eritrea
Africa was also one of the worst-hit places in terms of coronavirus and also reported cases of Ebola some time ago but this East African country with a population of 6 million announced on May 15 that it had no active coronavirus cases.
Montenegro
Montenegro had declared itself free of the virus on May 24. It had a total of 324 cases which they have gotten rid of.
Papua New Guinea
While the first case here was detected on March 20 almost withing a month that is on May 4, the Pacific country declared itself free of coronavirus. However, Papua New Guinea has its borders closed and isn't allowing travellers from Asia.
Seychelles
Famous tourist destination, Seychelles only reported 11 cases of Covid-19 and all the patients were tested negative for coronavirus after recovering. With a population of 97,096, the country had its first two cases on March 14.
East Timor
The beautiful island country recorded the recovery of its final case of coronavirus on May 15. East Timor had banned visitors from February 10 itself and it had its first case on March 21.
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Another COVID-19-free country is from the West Indies. The population of this country is just 52,441 and Saint Kitts and Nevis recorded its first cases on March 24.
Fiji
Another very famous island country that is very famous amid tourist, Fiji declared itself COVID-19-free by April 20. The country had a total of 18 cases and all of them recovered.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 10, 2020 08:09 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).