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Basic Facts of New Zealand

 



Official name New Zealand 



Capital Wellington 



Area 270,534 square kilometres 

104,454 square miles 



Administrative divisions (population) 

Auckland 1,159,400 (1998 Estimate) 


Bay of Plenty 238,300 (1998 Estimate) 


Canterbury 487,400 (1998 Estimate) 


Gisborne 46,700 (1998 Estimate) 


Hawke’s Bay 146,200 (1998 Estimate) 


Marlborough 39,700 (1998 Estimate) 


Nelson 41,400 (1998 Estimate) 


Northland 143,400 (1998 Estimate) 


Otago 188,300 (1998 Estimate) 


Southland 95,700 (1998 Estimate) 


Taranaki 106,700 (1998 Estimate) 


Tasman 39,600 (1998 Estimate) 


Waikato 365,200 (1998 Estimate) 


Wanganui-Manawatu 231,700 (1998 Estimate) 


Wellington 428,700 (1998 Estimate) 


West Coast Region 32,900 (1998 Estimate) 



Largest cities (population) 

Auckland 1,076,100 (1998 Estimate) 


Christchurch 339,500 (1998 Estimate) 


Hamilton 167,200 (1998 Estimate) 


Wellington 165,200 (1998 Estimate) 


Dunedin 112,400 (1998 Estimate) 


Tauranga 89,800 (1998 Estimate) 


Palmerston North 75,700 (1998 Estimate) 


Hastings 59,900 (1998 Estimate) 


Napier 55,700 (1998 Estimate) 


Rotorua 55,100 (1998 Estimate) 


Nelson 52,100 (1998 Estimate) 





People



Population 3,697,850 (2000 Estimate) 



Population growth 



Population growth rate 0.94 per cent (2000 Estimate) 



Population density 

14 persons per square kilometre Estimate 


35 persons per square mile Estimate 



Urbanization 

Per cent urban 86 per cent (1998 Estimate) 


Per cent rural 14 per cent (1998 Estimate) 



Life expectancy 

Total 78.1 years (2000 Estimate) 


Female 81.6 years (2000 Estimate) 


Male 74.8 years (2000 Estimate) 



Infant mortality rate 

6 deaths per 1,000 live births (2000 Estimate) 



Literacy rate 

Total 99 per cent (1995) 


Female Not available 


Male Not available 



Ethnic divisions 

European 73 per cent 


Maori 12 per cent 


Pacific Islander 4 per cent 


Asian 5 per cent 


Other or none 6 per cent 



Languages 

English (official), Maori (official) 



Religions 

Anglican 22 per cent 


Presbyterian 16 per cent 


Roman Catholic 15 per cent 


Other Christian 10 per cent 


Non-religious 21 per cent 


Other or unspecified 16 per cent 





Government




Type of government Parliamentary democracy 



Independence 26 September 1907 (from United Kingdom) 



Constitution 

No official constitution; consists of various documents, including certain acts of the parliaments of Great Britain and New Zealand; Constitution Act 1986 was to have come into force 1 January 1987, but has not been enacted 



Voting rights Universal at age 18 



Membership of international organizations 

APEC, Cairns Group, Colombo Plan, Commonwealth, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICFTU, ICPO/Interpol, IEA, IFRCS, IMF, INTELSAT, ISO, NAM (guest), OECD, UN, UNESCO, WHO, WTO 





Economy





Gross domestic product (GDP) (US$) 

53 billion (1998) 



GDP per capita (US$) 13,940 (1998) 



GDP by economic sector 

GDP, agriculture 7.4 per cent (1998) 


GDP, industry 26 per cent (1998) 


GDP, services 66.6 per cent (1998) 



National budget (US$) 

Total revenue 21.89 billion (1997) 


Total expenditure 20.80 billion (1997) 



Monetary unit 

1 New Zealand dollar (NZ$), consisting of 100 cents 



Exports 

Wool, lamb, mutton, beef, fish, cheese, chemicals, forestry products, fruits and vegetables, manufactured items, dairy products, wood 



Imports 

Machinery and equipment, vehicles and aircraft, petroleum, consumer goods 



Major trading partners for exports 

Australia, Japan, United States, United Kingdom, South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Germany 



Major trading partners for imports 

Australia, United States, Japan, United Kingdom, Germany, Taiwan, Italy 



Industries 

Food processing, wood and paper products, textiles, machinery, transport equipment, banking and insurance, tourism, mining 



Agriculture 

Livestock dominates: wool, meat, dairy products; crops: wheat, barley, potatoes, pulses, fruits, vegetables 



Natural resources 

Natural gas, iron ore, sand, coal, timber, hydroelectric power, gold, limestone 



Sources: 

All the above information has been taken from indirect resources. Basic Facts and People sections
Area data are from the individual country statistical bureaus. Population, population growth rate, infant mortality, and life expectancy data are from the United States Census Bureau, International Programs Center; International database, 2000; (www.census.gov). Population density data are from the individual country statistical bureaus, and the United States Census Bureau, International Programs Center; International database, 2000; (www.census.gov). Largest cities population data and administrative divisions data are from the individual country statistical bureaus. Literacy rate data are from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) database, 2000; (www.unesco.org). Urban and rural population data are from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations (UN), FAOSTAT database, 2000; (www.fao.org). Ethnic divisions and religion data are largely from the latest Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook, as well as various country censuses and reports. Language data are largely from the Ethnologue, Languages of the World, SIL International; (www.sil.org).
Government section
Government, independence, constitution, and voting rights data are largely from various government Web sites, the latest Europa World Yearbook, and the latest Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook.
Economy section
Gross domestic product (GDP), GDP per capita, GDP by economic sector, and national budget data are from the World Bank database, 2000; (www.worldbank.org). Monetary unit, exports and imports, natural resources, agriculture, and industries information is from the latest Europa World Yearbook, and various International Monetary Fund (IMF) publications.

Note: Due to rounding, totals may not add up to 100 per cent.

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