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“These will be distributed starting next week. They allow you to keep a manual paper diary; we are aware that some of our senior citizens in particular prefer to keep a paper record of where they have been.”
The brochures will be distributed in packs of 10 and the government is asking community organizations to order copies for distribution.
“Particularly senior groups, those in other parts of the community where technology may not be as appropriate or easily adopted.”
Hipkins urged New Zealanders to keep track of his movements. “If you are not using the app, we ask that you track your movements in some other way.”
The application has been downloaded more than two million times. Whether New Zealanders are using it is another question.
Auckland locksmith Kelvin Green is doing his best to enforce the rules but is still getting resistance from customers.
“We have QR codes on the back doors, the front door and the counter here and we remind them before we notify them if they have registered or not, and we also have a paper registration.
“We probably have about 40 percent of the people who sign up when we actually tell them.”
Some people forget, and one customer was very reluctant to provide contact details, but ultimately customers have complied, Green said.
“If they want service, they have to register.”
At least 2.1 million scans were recorded on Tuesday, averaging just over one scan per account per day. Thousands of people still do not register their movements.
On the streets of Auckland, people varied in the way they tracked their movements, many used the app, others found the technology too difficult, and others simply preferred pencil and paper.
Auckland buses remain a gap in the city’s COVID-19 tracking efforts. QR codes are not mandatory on buses until Friday, even though the buses are tied to the latter group.
“It is the first time I take public transport this morning and I completely forgot about [the QR code], I had not noticed when I went up, “said a traveler Control.
Professor Shaun Hendy, an expert on COVID-19 data modeling, said that the tracking app alone could not be completely trusted.
“Digital applications in general have been oversold. They are part of the puzzle, but they are not a silver bullet,” he said.
Wednesday’s brochure promotion comes after tech entrepreneurs criticized the government’s slow response in implementing a CovidCard.
The proposed card uses Bluetooth technology to help with more efficient bulk contact tracing. Professor Hendy said Control some claims around it were exaggerated.
“What makes them really useful is when they can be integrated into the manual contact tracing system.
“One of the weaknesses of CovidCard is that once it was implemented it could not be updated. Therefore, it would be more difficult for it to work in an integrated way with the health system,” he said.
About 50 percent of New Zealanders over the age of 18 have downloaded the app. That compares with 37 percent in Ireland and 24 percent in Australia.
However, Professor Hendy said New Zealand still has a long way to go.
“It’s not at the level we’d like to see it at yet, but it’s useful and I’d love to see it sustained now that we’re back at Level 2.5 and Level 2. Usage and new logs have dropped during our 102 days without new cases.
“It’s good to see him recover, but we have to make it higher.”
RNZ
