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New Zealand Facts and Figures from Encarta Go to article
Basic Facts
Official name New Zealand
Capital Wellington
Area 270,534 sq km
104,454 sq mi
New Zealand Flag and Anthem
New Zealand Flag and Anthem
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People
Population 4,115,771 (2007 estimate)
Population growth
Population growth rate 0.95 percent (2007 estimate)
Projected population in 2025 4,672,537 (2007 estimate)
Projected population in 2050 4,842,397 (2007 estimate)
Population density 15 persons per sq km (2007 estimate)
40 persons per sq mi (2007 estimate)
Urban/rural distribution
Share urban 86 percent (2005 estimate)
Share rural 14 percent (2005 estimate)
Largest cities, with population
Auckland 1,241,700 (2005 estimate)
Wellington 370,100 (2005 estimate)
Christchurch 367,800 (2005 estimate)
Hamilton 185,100 (2005 estimate)
Dunedin 114,800 (2005 estimate)
Ethnic groups
European 75 percent
Maori 15 percent
Pacific Islander 5 percent
Other (including Asian) 5 percent
Languages
English (official), Maori (official), Polynesian languages
Religious affiliations
Protestant 24 percent
Anglican 21 percent
Roman Catholic 13 percent
Buddhist 1 percent
Nonreligious 13 percent
Other (including Jewish and Hindu) 28 percent
Health and Education
Life expectancy
Total 79 years (2007 estimate)
Female 82.1 years (2007 estimate)
Male 76 years (2007 estimate)
Infant mortality rate 6 deaths per 1,000 live births (2007 estimate)
Population per physician 449 people (2004)
Population per hospital bed 164 people (2002)
Literacy rate
Total 99 percent (1995)
Female Not available
Male Not available
Education expenditure as a share of gross national product (GNP) 7.1 percent (2002-2003)
Number of years of compulsory schooling 12 years (2002-2003)
Number of students per teacher, primary school 18 students per teacher (2002-2003)
Government
Form of government Parliamentary democracy
Head of state Governor-general, representing the British monarch
Head of government Prime minister
Legislature Unicameral legislature
House of Representatives: 120 members
Voting qualifications Universal at age 18
Constitution
No written constitution; political system closely modeled on that of the United Kingdom.
Highest court Court of Appeal
Armed forces Army, Navy, Air Force
Total number of military personnel 8,660 (2004)
Military expenditures as a share of gross domestic product (GDP) 1.5 percent (2003)
First-level political divisions 12 regions and 4 unitary authorities
Economy
Gross domestic product (GDP, in U.S.$) $109 billion (2005)
GDP per capita (U.S.$) $26,663.60 (2005)
GDP by economic sector
Agriculture, forestry, fishing 9.5 percent (2001)
Industry 25 percent (2001)
Services 65.5 percent (2001)
Employment
Number of workers 2,153,526 (2005)
Workforce share of economic sector
Agriculture, forestry, fishing 7 percent (2005)
Industry 22 percent (2005)
Services 71 percent (2005)
Unemployment rate 3.9 percent (2004)
National budget (U.S.$)
Total revenue $35.55 billion (2005)
Total expenditure $41.50 billion (2005)
Monetary unit
1 New Zealand dollar ($NZ), consisting of 100 cents
Agriculture
Wool, barley, wheat, maize, oats, fruits and vegetables, livestock
Mining
Coal, petroleum and natural gas, gold, iron ore, bentonite, silica sand
Manufacturing
Meat and dairy products, paper and paper products, chemicals, metal products, machinery, clothing, lumber, motor vehicles, electrical machinery, refined petroleum, printed materials
Major exports
Dairy products, wool, fish, meat, fruit and vegetables
Major imports
Manufactured goods, heavy machinery, petroleum, chemicals, iron and steel, plastic materials, textiles
Major trade partners for exports
Australia, United States, Japan, United Kingdom, and South Korea
Major trade partners for imports
Australia, United States, Japan, China, and Germany
Energy, Communications, and Transportation
Electricity production
Electricity from thermal sources 31.06 percent (2003 estimate)
Electricity from hydroelectric sources 59.14 percent (2003 estimate)
Electricity from nuclear sources 0 percent (2003 estimate)
Electricity from geothermal, solar, and wind sources 9.79 percent (2003 estimate)
Number of radios per 1,000 people 997 (1997)
Number of telephones per 1,000 people 422 (2005)
Number of televisions per 1,000 people 541 (2000 estimate)
Number of Internet hosts per 10,000 people 1,183 (2003)
Daily newspaper circulation per 1,000 people 362 (2000)
Number of motor vehicles per 1,000 people 730 (2002)
Paved road as a share of total roads 64 percent (2003)
Sources
Basic Facts and People sections
Area data are from the statistical bureaus of individual countries. Population, population growth rate, and population projections are from the United States Census Bureau, International Programs Center, International Data Base (IDB) (www.census.gov). Urban and rural population data are from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations (UN), FAOSTAT database (www.fao.org). Largest cities population data and political divisions data are from the statistical bureaus of individual countries. Ethnic divisions and religion data are largely from the latest Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook and from various country censuses and reports. Language data are largely from the Ethnologue, Languages of the World, Summer Institute of Linguistics International (www.sil.org).
Health and Education section
Life expectancy and infant mortality data are from the United States Census Bureau, International Programs Center, International database (IDB) (www.census.gov). Population per physician and population per hospital bed data are from the World Health Organization (WHO) (www.who.int). Education data are from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) database (www.unesco.org).
Government section
Government, independence, legislature, constitution, highest court, and voting qualifications data are largely from various government Web sites, the latest Europa World Yearbook, and the latest Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook. The armed forces data is from Military Balance.
Economy section
Gross domestic product (GDP), GDP per capita, GDP by economic sectors, employment, and national budget data are from the World Bank database (www.worldbank.org). Monetary unit, agriculture, mining, manufacturing, exports, imports, and major trade partner information is from the statistical bureaus of individual countries, latest Europa World Yearbook, and various United Nations and International Monetary Fund (IMF) publications.
Energy, Communication, and Transportation section
Electricity information is from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) database (www.eia.doe.gov). Radio, telephone, television, and newspaper information is from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) database (www.unesco.org). Internet hosts, motor vehicles, and road data are from the World Bank database (www.worldbank.org).
Note
Figures may not total 100 percent due to rounding.
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