New Zealand Prime Minister: 'We have won' the battle against coronavirus

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says the country will be stepping back from its highest level of lockdown combat the coronavirus. The country will remain in a “level 3” lockdown for another two weeks.

“There is no widespread undetected community transmission in New Zealand,” Ardern said Monday. “We have won that battle.”

New Zealand has a population of about 5 million, 400,000 of whom will return to work Tuesday, as some businesses and schools reopen. The small island nation's economy will be operating at about 75% capacity. 

The country has been on a "level 4" lockdown for five weeks now. The prime minister called the restrictions "the strictest constraints placed on New Zealanders in modern history." 

New Zealand has recorded 1,469 cases of coronavirus, 19 of which were fatal. Their first case was diagnosed on February 28.