Question: What is the "dynamic zero-COVID" policy?

Spokesperson: Since the outbreak of COVID-19, the Chinese government has followed the principle of putting people and their lives first. Our prevention and control measures are centred around people and their health. It is under this principle that we have adopted the dynamic zero-COVID policy, and kept optimizing various measures as the pandemic situation changes. Our only and sole aim is to protect people's lives and health as best we can, and at the same time, ensure the sustainable, sound and stable economic and social development.

China's policy is different from those of so-called "herd immunity" and "natural immunity" of some countries. It prioritises enhanced immunity through vaccination. The goal of "dynamic zero-COVID" is not to pursue zero infection, but to control the pandemic within the shortest possible time with the lowest social cost, and maximise the protection of people's health and normal work and life, and by so doing, ensure the safety and health of more than 1.4 billion Chinese people.

The "dynamic zero-COVID" policy stands out in its emphasis on precision. Each locality should take into account their particular pandemic situation, the stage of the pandemic, and the local social and economic realities, and on that basis, take targeted actions that well balance pandemic control on the one hand and economic development and normal work and life on the other. The process of balancing is a dynamic one, which requires sound coordination between the short term and the long term, between the specific and the overall, and between the individual and the collective interests. From the very beginning, sound coordination has been a central goal of the Chinese government, and the Chinese people have been working to find ways and means to this end.