Hangzhou and Beijing follow Shenzhen’s approach to ‘dynamic zero’ by implementing mass testing for public transport and large venues
- The southern tech hub of Shenzhen has managed to keep an early outbreak of Omicron under control through only a week of lockdown
- China is facing its biggest Covid-19 crisis since the Spring of 2020, with Shanghai’s month-long lockdown disrupting supply chains
Beijing and Hangzhou, home to many of China’s leading tech firms, have started to implement Shenzhen’s approach to the country’s “dynamic zero” Covid-19 policy, by asking residents to present negative test results if they want to use public transport or enter certain venues.
Unlike the strict month-long lockdown in Shanghai that has generated public criticism and hardship for its 25 million residents – not to mention serious disruption of supply chains – the southern tech hub of Shenzhen has managed to keep an early outbreak of Omicron under control through only a week of lockdown.
In Shenzhen thousands of nucleic acid test stands have been set up to offer fast and free tests, as it is mandatory to present a negative result within 72 hours to board the city’s subways or buses.
This approach of frequent testing, which some critics have described as unnecessary and costly, started to be adopted by Hangzhou, home of e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding, on Thursday. The city, home to 10 million people, announced that everyone must take at least one nucleic acid test every 48 hours. Alibaba owns the South China Morning Post.
If a resident cannot provide a test record for the past 48-hours, they will be denied access to public transport and entry into crowded places in the city, according to a government notice published on Wednesday. As part of this effort, the city will add 10,000 test stands.
Meanwhile, Beijing will conduct three rounds of mandatory Covid-19 tests for all residents in the city’s downtown districts from Tuesday to Saturday, and a number of venues have already started to require that visitors present a negative test result within the past 24 hours or 48 hours to enter.
Universal Beijing Resort, in the eastern part of the city, requires that all visitors present a negative test result within the past 24 hours from this Friday while China’s National Stadium has demanded that visitors present a negative result within the past 48 hours.