China’s slow response to coronavirus has shown the weakness of its centralised model

In a system where power is concentrated at the top, local officials are not incentivised to take decisive action.

BEIJING, CHINA - JANUARY 26: Chinese police officers wearing masks stand in front of the Tiananmen Gate on January 26, 2020 in Beijing, China. The number of cases of coronavirus rose to 1,975 in mainland China on Sunday. Authorities tightened restrictions on travel and tourism this weekend after putting Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province, under quarantine on Thursday. The spread of the virus corresponds with the first days of the Spring Festival, which is one of the biggest domestic travel weeks of the year in China. Popular tourism landmarks in Beijing including the Forbidden City, Badaling Great Wall, and The Palace Museum were closed to the public starting Saturday. The Beijing Municipal Education Commission announced it will delay reopening schools from kindergarten to university. The death toll on Sunday rose to 56. The majority of fatalities are in Wuhan where the first cases of the virus were reported last month (Photo by Betsy Joles/Getty Images)

In a nearly deserted market in Wuhan, the epicentre of the deadly coronavirus outbreak in China, 31-year-old Wan stands nervously among an array of masked faces waiting in line to purchase groceries. It’s the first time he has ventured outside his apartment since the eastern city, with a population of 11 million, was effectively quarantined after the spread of the mysterious virus that may have originated from a local market. Public transport has been shut down, daily life has ground to a halt, and medical supplies have become increasingly sparse.

As the number of confirmed cases worldwide approaches 3,000 and the death toll in China nears 80, the government has imposed an unprecedented lockdown spanning 15 cities with a combined population of nearly 60 million people. The outbreak and subsequent shutdown coincided with the Lunar New Year holiday, China’s largest annual celebration, a period when hundreds of millions of Chinese people would typically travel and host large gatherings.