...I haven't followed what 196 countries have done, nor would I say that there is only one solution, just like there isn't only one solution to many other problems (e.g., what is the best tax system for a particular country). What might work in Sweden might not work in China, and what might work in China might not work in France, and what might work in France might not work in America. It's not a question of just looking at COVID -- it's a question of looking at COVID in the context of everything else, and I think that's the key point that's been missed.

I'll answer it this way by just focusing on my own country:
-- COVID should have been addressed in America with recommendations to protect the most vulnerable (e.g., very old/sick) and maintain good personal hygiene, and sensible health habits.
-- Given that obesity is an obviously dangerous co-morbidity factor, there should have been much more emphasis on healthy living, whereas in fact there has been none. In fact, gyms were closed, LOL.
-- Potential treatments, such as Ivermectin, should not have been pilloried. They might work, they might not, but there should not have been coordinated efforts to denigrate any potential treatment. The opposite should have occurred -- potentially treatments should have been enthusiastically explored and encouraged. Instead, there's been nearly 100% focus on a vaccine solution that isn't even a solution and never could be.
-- MOST IMPORTANTLY, there should have been no business closures, no school closures, no church closures, no vaccine mandates and no mask mandates (although I would say that the last is the least offensive by far). Collectively, the steps that were taken along these lines have done far, far more harm than good economically, politically, socially, medically and psychologically, IMO.

So, the countries that did the best in my opinion would have generally most closely followed what I've laid out above.