Introduction

Background: The Polynesian Maori reached New Zealand in about A.D. 800. In 1840, their chieftains entered into a compact with Britain, the Treaty of Waitangi, in which they ceded sovereignty to Queen Victoria while retaining territorial rights. In that same year, the British began the first organized colonial settlement. A series of land wars between 1843 and 1872 ended with the defeat of the native peoples. The British colony of New Zealand became an independent dominion in 1907 and supported the UK militarily in both World Wars. New Zealand's full participation in a number of defense alliances lapsed by the 1980s. In recent years, the government has sought to address longstanding Maori grievances.

Geography

Location: Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of Australia

Geographic coordinates: 41 00 S, 174 00 E

Map references: Oceania

Area: total: 268,680 sq km; land: 268,021 sq km; water: NA; note: includes Antipodes Islands, Auckland Islands, Bounty Islands, Campbell Island, Chatham Islands, and Kermadec Islands

Area - comparative: about the size of Colorado

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 15,134 km

Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm; exclusive economic zone: 200 nm; continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin

Climate: temperate with sharp regional contrasts

Terrain: predominately mountainous with some large coastal plains

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

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

Land use: arable land: 5.6%; permanent crops: 6.99%; other: 87.41% (2001)

Irrigated land: 2,850 sq km (1998 est.)

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

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

Environment - international agreements: party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling; signed, but not ratified: Antarctic Seals, Marine Life Conservation

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

People

Population: 4,035,461 (July 2005 est.)

Age structure: 0-14 years: 21.4% (male 441,836/female 421,065); 15-64 years: 66.9% (male 1,356,095/female 1,343,728); 65 years and over: 11.7% (male 206,650/female 266,087) (2005 est.)

Median age: total: 33.65 years; male: 32.92 years; female: 34.4 years (2005 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.02% (2005 est.)

Birth rate: 13.9 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Death rate: 7.53 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Net migration rate: 3.83 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Sex ratio: at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female; under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female; 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female; 65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female; total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2005 est.)

Infant mortality rate: total: 5.85 deaths/1,000 live births; male: 6.7 deaths/1,000 live births; female: 4.96 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)

Life expectancy at birth: total population: 78.66 years; male: 75.67 years; female: 81.78 years (2005 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.79 children born/woman (2005 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0.1% (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 1,400 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths: less 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%, other 0.5%, mixed 7.8%, unspecified 3.8% (2001 census)

Religions: Anglican 14.9%, Roman Catholic 12.4%, Presbyterian 10.9%, Methodist 2.9%,

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)

Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write; total population: 99% (1980 est.); male: NA%; female: NA%

Government

Country name: conventional long form: none; conventional short form: New Zealand; abbreviation: NZ

Government type: parliamentary democracy

Capital: Wellington

Administrative divisions: 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

Dependent areas: Cook Islands, Niue, Tokelau

Independence: 26 September 1907 (from UK)

National holiday: Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty over New Zealand), 6 February (1840)

Constitution: consists of a series of legal documents, including certain acts of the UK and New Zealand Parliaments and The Constitution Act 1986, which is the principal formal charter adopted 1 January 1987; in force 1 January 1987

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

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch: chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Dame Silvia CARTWRIGHT (since 4 April 2001)

head of government: Prime Minister Helen CLARK (since 10 December 1999) and Deputy Prime Minister Michael CULLEN (since NA July 2002)

cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor general on the recommendation of the prime minister

elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general; deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general

Legislative branch: unicameral House of Representatives - commonly called Parliament (120 seats; 69 members elected by popular vote in single-member constituencies including 7 Maori constituencies, and 51 proportional seats chosen from party lists, all to serve three-year terms)

elections: last held 27 July 2002 (next to be held 17 September 2005)

election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NZLP 52, NP 27, NZFP 13, ACT New Zealand 9, Green Party 9, UF 8, Progressive 2; (By-election in 2004 resulted in following change to party seats NZLP 51, Maori 1)

Judicial branch: Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; High Court; note - Judges appointed by the Governor-General

Economy

Economy - overview: Over the past 20 years the government has transformed New Zealand from an agrarian economy dependent on concessionary British market access to a more industrialized, free market economy that can compete globally. This dynamic growth has boosted real incomes (but left behind many at the bottom of the ladder), broadened and deepened the technological capabilities of the industrial sector, and contained inflationary pressures. Per capita income has risen for six consecutive years and is now more than $23,000 in purchasing power parity terms. New Zealand is heavily dependent on trade - particularly in agricultural products - to drive growth. Exports are equal to about 20% of GDP. Thus far the economy has been resilient, and the Labor Government promises that expenditures on health, education, and pensions will increase proportionately to output.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $92.51 billion (2004 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 4.8% (2004 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $23,200 (2004 est.)

GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 4.6%; industry: 27.4%; services: 68% (2004 est.)

Labor force: 2.05 million (2004 est.)

Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 10%, industry 25%, services 65% (1995)

Unemployment rate: 4.2% (2004 est.)

Population below poverty line: NA

Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 0.3%; highest 10%: 29.8% (1991 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.4% (2004 est.)

Investment (gross fixed): 22.4% of GDP (2004 est.)
 

Budget: revenues: $38.29 billion; expenditures: $36.12 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)

Public debt: 22.1% of GDP (2004 est.)

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

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

Industrial production growth rate: 5.9% (2004 est.)

Electricity - production: 38.39 billion kWh (2002)

Electricity - consumption: 35.71 billion kWh (2002)

Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2002)

Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2002)

Oil - production: 42,160 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - consumption: 132,700 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports: 30,220 bbl/day (2001)

Oil - imports: 119,700 bbl/day (2001)

Oil - proved reserves: 89.62 million bbl (1 January 2002)

Natural gas - production: 6.504 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - consumption: 6.504 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - exports: 0 cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - imports: 0 cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves: 58.94 billion cu m (1 January 2002)

Current account balance: $-3.647 billion (2004 est.)

Exports: $19.85 billion (2004 est.)

Exports - commodities: dairy products, meat, wood and wood products, fish, machinery

Exports - partners: Australia 19.6%, US 14.3%, Japan 11.4%, China 6.3%, UK 5.1% (2004)

Imports: $19.77 billion (2004 est.)

Imports - commodities: machinery and equipment, vehicles and aircraft, petroleum,

electronics, textiles, plastics

Imports - partners: Australia 28.6%, Japan 10.7%, US 10%, China 6.6%, Germany 4.2%,

Singapore 4.1% (2004)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $4.805 billion (2004 est.)

Debt - external: $47.34 billion (2004 est.)

Economic aid - donor: ODA, $99.7 million

Currency (code): New Zealand dollar (NZD)

Exchange rates: New Zealand dollars per US dollar - 1.5087 (2004), 1.7221 (2003), 2.1622 (2002), 2.3788 (2001), 2.2012 (2000)

Fiscal year: 1 July - 30 June

Communications

Telephones - main lines in use: 1.765 million (2002)

Telephones - mobile cellular: 2.599 million (2003)

Telephone system: general assessment: excellent domestic and international systems;

domestic: NA; international: country code - 64; submarine cables to Australia and Fiji; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean)

Radio broadcast stations: AM 124, FM 290, shortwave 4 (1998)

Television broadcast stations: 41 (plus 52 medium-power repeaters and over 650 low-power

repeaters) (1997)

Internet country code: .nz

Internet hosts: 474,395 (2003)