Profile - New Zealand

7/30/2019 Profile - New Zealand

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New Zealand

Page 1 of 11CIA - The World Factbook -- New Zealand

10/4/2008https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/print/nz.html


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Introduction New Zealand

Background: The Polynesian Maori reached New Zealand in about A.D. 800. In 1840,their chieftains entered into a compact with Britain, the Treaty ofWaitangi, in which they ceded sovereignty to Queen Victoria whileretaining territorial rights. In that same year, the British began the firstorganized colonial settlement. A series of land wars between 1843 and

1872 ended with the defeat of the native peoples. The British colony ofNew Zealand became an independent dominion in 1907 and supportedthe UK militarily in both World Wars. New Zealand's full participationin a number of defense alliances lapsed by the 1980s. In recent years, thegovernment has sought to address longstanding Maori grievances.

Geography New Zealand

Location: Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, southeastof Australia

Geographic coordinates: 41 00 S, 174 00 E

Map references: Oceania

Area: total: 268,680 sq kmland: 268,021 sq kmwater: NAnote: includes Antipodes Islands, Auckland Islands,Bounty Islands, Campbell Island, Chatham Islands, andKermadec Islands

Area - comparative: about the size of Colorado

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 15,134 km

Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nmcontiguous zone: 24 nmexclusive economic zone: 200 nmcontinental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of thecontinental margin

Climate: temperate with sharp regional contrasts

Terrain: predominately mountainous with some large coastalplains

Elevation extremes: lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 mhighest point: Aoraki-Mount Cook 3,754 m

Natural resources: natural gas, iron ore, sand, coal, timber, hydropower,gold, limestone

Land use: arable land: 5.54%permanent crops: 6.92%other: 87.54% (2005)




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Irrigated land: 2,850 sq km (2003)

Total renewable water resources: 397 cu km (1995)

Freshwater withdrawal(domestic/industrial/agricultural):

total: 2.11 cu km/yr (48%/9%/42%)per capita: 524 cu m/yr (2000)

Natural hazards: earthquakes are common, though usually not severe;volcanic activity

Environment - current issues: deforestation; soil erosion; native flora and fauna hard-hit by invasive species

Environment - internationalagreements:

party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty,Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-KyotoProtocol, Desertification, Endangered Species,Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Lawof the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection,Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber94, Wetlands, Whalingsigned, but not ratified: Antarctic Seals, Marine LifeConservation

Geography - note: about 80% of the population lives in cities; Wellingtonis the southernmost national capital in the world

People New Zealand

Population: 4,173,460 (July 2008 est.)

Age structure: 0-14 years: 20.9% (male 446,883/female 424,240)

15-64 years: 66.5% (male 1,390,669/female 1,385,686)65 years and over: 12.6% (male 238,560/female 287,422) (2008 est.)

Median age: total: 36.3 yearsmale: 35.6 yearsfemale: 37.1 years (2008 est.)

Populationgrowth rate:

0.971% (2008 est.)

Birth rate: 14.09 births/1,000 population (2008 est.)

Death rate: 7 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)

Net migrationrate:

2.62 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2008 est.)

Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/femaleunder 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female65 years and over: 0.83 male(s)/femaletotal population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2008 est.)

Infant mortality total: 4.99 deaths/1,000 live births




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rate: male: 5.62 deaths/1,000 live birthsfemale: 4.33 deaths/1,000 live births (2008 est.)

Life expectancyat birth:

total population: 80.24 yearsmale: 78.33 yearsfemale: 82.25 years (2008 est.)

Total fertilityrate: 2.11 children born/woman (2008 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adultprevalence rate:

0.1% (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS -people living

with HIV/AIDS:

1,400 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS -deaths:

fewer than 200 (2003 est.)

Nationality: noun: New Zealander(s)

adjective: New Zealand

Ethnic groups: European 69.8%, Maori 7.9%, Asian 5.7%, Pacific islander 4.4%, other0.5%, mixed 7.8%, unspecified 3.8% (2001 census)

Religions: Anglican 14.9%, Roman Catholic 12.4%, Presbyterian 10.9%, Methodist2.9%, Pentecostal 1.7%, Baptist 1.3%, other Christian 9.4%, other 3.3%,unspecified 17.2%, none 26% (2001 census)

Languages: English (official), Maori (official), Sign Language (official)

Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and writetotal population: 99%

male: 99%female: 99% (2003 est.)

School lifeexpectancy(primary to

tertiaryeducation):

total: 19 yearsmale: 19 yearsfemale: 20 years (2006)

Educationexpenditures:

6.2% of GDP (2006)

Government New Zealand

Country name: conventional long form: noneconventional short form: New Zealandabbreviation: NZ

Governmenttype:

parliamentary democracy

Capital: name: Wellingtongeographic coordinates: 41 28 S, 174 51 E




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time difference: UTC+12 (17 hours ahead of Washington, DC duringStandard Time)daylight saving time: +1hr, begins first Sunday in October; ends thirdSunday in Marchnote: New Zealand is divided into two time zones, including ChathamIsland

Administrativedivisions:

16 regions and 1 territory*; Auckland, Bay of Plenty, Canterbury,Chatham Islands*, Gisborne, Hawke's Bay, Manawatu-Wanganui,Marlborough, Nelson, Northland, Otago, Southland, Taranaki, Tasman,Waikato, Wellington, West Coast

Dependentareas:

Cook Islands, Niue, Tokelau

Independence: 26 September 1907 (from UK)

Nationalholiday:

Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty overNew Zealand), 6 February (1840); ANZAC Day (commemorated as theanniversary of the landing of troops of the Australian and New ZealandArmy Corps during World War I at Gallipoli, Turkey), 25 April (1915)

Constitution: consists of a series of legal documents, including certain acts of the UKand New Zealand Parliaments, as well as The Constitution Act 1986,which is the principal formal charter; adopted 1 January 1987, effective 1January 1987

Legal system: based on English law, with special land legislation and land courts for theMaori; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executivebranch: chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952);represented by Governor General Anand SATYANAND (since 23August 2006)head of government: Prime Minister Helen CLARK (since 10 December1999); Deputy Prime Minister Michael CULLEN (since July 2002)cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor general on therecommendation of the prime ministerelections: the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by themonarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority partyor the leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime ministerby the governor general; deputy prime minister appointed by thegovernor general

Legislativebranch:

unicameral House of Representatives - commonly called Parliament (120seats; 69 members elected by popular vote in single-memberconstituencies including 7 Maori constituencies, and 51 proportionalseats chosen from party lists; to serve three-year terms)elections: last held 17 September 2005 (next to be held not later than 15November 2008)election results: percent of vote by party - NZLP 41.1%, NP 39.1%,NZFP 5.7%, Green Party 5.3%, Maori 2.1%, UF 2.7%, ACT New




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Zealand 1.5%, Progressive 1.2%, other 1.3%; seats by party - NZLP 50,NP 48, NZFP 7, Green Party 6, Maori 4, UF 3, ACT New Zealand 2,Progressive 1note: results of 2005 election saw the total number of seats increase to121 because the Maori Party won one more electorate seat than itsentitlement under the party vote

Judicial branch: Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; High Court; note - judges appointed bythe Governor-General

Political partiesand leaders:

ACT New Zealand [Rodney HIDE]; Green Party [JeanetteFITZSIMONS]; Maori Party [Whatarangi WINIATA]; National Party orNP [John KEY]; New Zealand First Party or NZFP [Winston PETERS];New Zealand Labor Party or NZLP [Helen CLARK]; Progressive Party[James (Jim) ANDERTON]; United Future or UF [Peter DUNNE]

Politicalpressure

groups andleaders:

Women's Electoral Lobby or WELother: apartheid groups; civil rights groups; farmers groups; Maori;nuclear weapons groups; women's rights groups

Internationalorganization

participation:

ADB, ANZUS (US suspended security obligations to NZ on 11 August1986), APEC, ARF, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS,C, CP, EAS, EBRD, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IEA,IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM,IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, NAM (guest), NSG, OECD, OPCW, PCA,PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO,UNMIS, UNMIT, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO,WTO

Diplomaticrepresentation

in the US:

chief of mission: Ambassador Roy N. FERGUSONchancery: 37 Observatory Circle NW, Washington, DC 20008telephone: [1] (202) 328-4800FAX: [1] (202) 667-5227consulate(s) general: Los Angeles, New York

Diplomaticrepresentation

from the US:

chief of mission: Ambassador William P. McCORMICKembassy: 29 Fitzherbert Terrace, Thorndon, Wellingtonmailing address: P. O. Box 1190, Wellington; PSC 467, Box 1, APO AP96531-1034telephone: [64] (4) 462-6000FAX: [64] (4) 499-0490consulate(s) general: Auckland

Flagdescription:

blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant with fourred five-pointed stars edged in white centered in the outer half of theflag; the stars represent the Southern Cross constellation

Government -note:

while not an official symbol, the Kiwi, a small native flightless bird,represents New Zealand

Economy New Zealand

Economy - Over the past 20 years the government has transformed New Zealand




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overview: from an agrarian economy dependent on concessionary British marketaccess to a more industrialized, free market economy that can competeglobally. This dynamic growth has boosted real incomes - but left behindmany at the bottom of the ladder - and broadened and deepened thetechnological capabilities of the industrial sector. Per capita income hasrisen for eight consecutive years and reached $27,300 in 2007 inpurchasing power parity terms. Consumer and government spendinghave driven growth in recent years, and exports picked up in 2006 afterstruggling for several years. Exports were equal to about 22% of GDP in2007, down from 33% of GDP in 2001. Thus far the economy has beenresilient, and the Labor Government promises that expenditures onhealth, education, and pensions will increase proportionately to output.Inflationary pressures have built in recent years and the central bankraised its key rate 13 times since January 2004 to finish 2007 at 8.25%. Alarge balance of payments deficit poses another challenge in managingthe economy.

GDP(purchasing

power parity):

$112.4 billion (2007 est.)

GDP (officialexchange rate):

$128.1 billion (2007 est.)

GDP - realgrowth rate:

3.1% (2007 est.)

GDP - per capita(PPP):

$27,200 (2007 est.)

GDP -composition by

sector:

agriculture: 4.5%industry: 26.2%

services: 69.3% (2007 est.)Labor force: 2.236 million (2007 est.)

Labor force - byoccupation:

agriculture: 7%industry: 19%services: 74% (2006 est.)

Unemploymentrate:

3.6% (2007 est.)

Populationbelow poverty

line:

NA%

Householdincome or

consumption bypercentage

share:

lowest 10%: %NAhighest 10%: %NA

Distribution offamily income -

Gini index:

36.2 (1997)




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Inflation rate(consumer

prices):

2.4% (2007 est.)

Investment(gross fixed):

23.3% of GDP (2007 est.)

Budget: revenues: $58.31 billion

expenditures: $53.5 billion (2007 est.)

Public debt: 20.7% of GDP (2007 est.)

Agriculture -products:

dairy products, lamb and mutton; wheat, barley, potatoes, pulses, fruits,vegetables; wool, beef; fish

Industries: food processing, wood and paper products, textiles, machinery,transportation equipment, banking and insurance, tourism, mining

Industrialproduction

growth rate:

1.5% (2007 est.)

Electricity -production:

42.06 billion kWh (2006 est.)

Electricity -production by

source:

fossil fuel: 31.6%hydro: 57.8%nuclear: 0%other: 10.7% (2001)

Electricity -consumption:

37.39 billion kWh (2006 est.)

Electricity -

exports:

0 kWh (2005)

Electricity -imports:

0 kWh (2005)

Oil - production: 25,880 bbl/day (2006 est.)

Oil -consumption:

156,000 bbl/day (2006 est.)

Oil - exports: 15,720 bbl/day (2004)

Oil - imports: 140,900 bbl/day (2004)

Oil - provedreserves: 55.5 million bbl (1 January 2006 est.)

Natural gas -production:

3.9 billion cu m (2006 est.)

Natural gas -consumption:

3.7 billion cu m (2006 est.)

Natural gas -exports:

0 cu m (2005 est.)




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Natural gas -imports:

0 cu m (2005)

Natural gas -proved

reserves:

29.67 billion cu m (1 January 2006 est.)

Current account

balance:

-$10.23 billion (2007 est.)

Exports: $27.35 billion (2007 est.)

Exports -commodities:

dairy products, meat, wood and wood products, fish, machinery

Exports -partners:

Australia 22%, US 11.5%, Japan 9.2%, China 5.3%, UK 4.6% (2007)

Imports: $29.06 billion (2007 est.)

Imports -commodities:

machinery and equipment, vehicles and aircraft, petroleum, electronics,textiles, plastics

Imports -partners:

Australia 20.7%, China 13.4%, US 9.7%, Japan 9.5%, Singapore 4.9%,Germany 4.7% (2007)

Economic aid -donor:

ODA, $259 million (2006)

Reserves offoreign

exchange andgold:

$17.25 billion (31 December 2007 est.)

Debt - external: $51.44 billion (31 December 2007 est.)

Stock of directforeign

investment - athome:

$71.31 billion (2007 est.)

Stock of directforeign

investment -abroad:

$NA

Market value ofpublicly traded

shares:

$40.62 billion (2005)

Currency(code):

New Zealand dollar (NZD)

Currency code: NZD

Exchange rates: New Zealand dollars per US dollar - 1.3811 (2007), 1.5408 (2006),1.4203 (2005), 1.5087 (2004), 1.7221 (2003)

Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 Marchnote: this is the fiscal year for tax purposes




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Communications New Zealand

Telephones -main lines in

use:

1.706 million (2007)

Telephones -mobile cellular:

4.245 million (2007)

Telephonesystem:

general assessment: excellent domestic and international systemsdomestic: NAinternational: country code - 64; the Southern Cross submarine cablesystem provides links to Australia, Fiji, and the US; satellite earthstations - 8 (1 Inmarsat - Pacific Ocean, 7 other)

Radiobroadcast

stations:

AM 124, FM 290, shortwave 4 (1998)

Radios: 3.75 million (1997)

Televisionbroadcast

stations:

41 (plus about 700 repeaters) (1997)

Televisions: 1.926 million (1997)

Internet countrycode:

.nz

Internet hosts: 1.433 million (2007)

Internet ServiceProviders

(ISPs):

36 (2000)

Internet users: 3.36 million (2007)

Transportation New Zealand

Airports: 121 (2007)

Airports - withpaved runways:

total: 41over 3,047 m: 22,438 to 3,047 m: 11,524 to 2,437 m: 11914 to 1,523 m: 26

under 914 m: 1 (2007)Airports - with

unpavedrunways:

total: 801,524 to 2,437 m: 3914 to 1,523 m: 31under 914 m: 46 (2007)

Pipelines: condensate 331 km; gas 1,896 km; liquid petroleum gas 172 km; oil 288km; refined products 260 km (2007)

Railways: total: 4,128 km




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narrow gauge: 4,128 km 1.067-m gauge (506 km electrified) (2006)

Roadways: total: 93,460 kmpaved: 60,303 km (includes 171 km of expressways)unpaved: 33,157 km (2005)

Merchant

marine:

total: 13 ships (1000 GRT or over) 135,325 GRT/126,527 DWT

by type: bulk carrier 3, cargo 2, chemical tanker 1, passenger/cargo 4,petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 2foreign-owned: 3 (Australia 1, Germany 1, South Africa 1)registered in other countries: 5 (Antigua and Barbuda 2, Cook Islands 1,France 1, UK 1) (2008)

Ports andterminals:

Auckland, Lyttelton, Marsden Point, Tauranga, Wellington, Whangarei

Military New Zealand

Militarybranches:

New Zealand Defense Force (NZDF): New Zealand Army, Royal NewZealand Navy, Royal New Zealand Air Force (2008)

Military serviceage and

obligation:

17 years of age for voluntary military service; soldiers cannot bedeployed until the age of 18; no conscription (2008)

Manpoweravailable for

military service:

males age 16-49: 1,009,298females age 16-49: 997,134 (2008 est.)

Manpower fit formilitary service:

males age 16-49: 833,073females age 16-49: 822,807 (2008 est.)

Manpowerreachingmilitarily

significant ageannually:

male: 31,834

female: 30,243 (2008 est.)

Militaryexpenditures:

1% of GDP (2005 est.)

Transnational

IssuesNew Zealand

Disputes -international:

asserts a territorial claim in Antarctica (Ross Dependency)

Illicit drugs: significant consumer of amphetaminesThis page was last updated on 2 October, 2008


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