1994 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1994 (Project Gutenberg)
Introduction
Abbreviation
NZ
Administrative divisions
93 counties, 9 districts*, and 3 town districts**; Akaroa, Amuri, Ashburton, Bay of Islands, Bruce, Buller, Chatham Islands, Cheviot, Clifton, Clutha, Cook, Dannevirke, Egmont, Eketahuna, Ellesmere, Eltham, Eyre, Featherston, Franklin, Golden Bay, Great Barrier Island, Grey, Hauraki Plains, Hawera*, Hawke's Bay, Heathcote, Hikurangi**, Hobson, Hokianga, Horowhenua, Hurunui, Hutt, Inangahua, Inglewood, Kaikoura, Kairanga, Kiwitea, Lake, Mackenzie, Malvern, Manaia**, Manawatu, Mangonui, Maniototo, Marlborough, Masterton, Matamata, Mount Herbert, Ohinemuri, Opotiki, Oroua, Otamatea, Otorohanga*, Oxford, Pahiatua, Paparua, Patea, Piako, Pohangina, Raglan, Rangiora*, Rangitikei, Rodney, Rotorua*, Runanga, Saint Kilda, Silverpeaks, Southland, Stewart Island, Stratford, Strathallan, Taranaki, Taumarunui, Taupo, Tauranga, Thames-Coromandel*, Tuapeka, Vincent, Waiapu, Waiheke, Waihemo, Waikato, Waikohu, Waimairi, Waimarino, Waimate, Waimate West, Waimea, Waipa, Waipawa*, Waipukurau*, Wairarapa South, Wairewa, Wairoa, Waitaki, Waitomo*, Waitotara, Wallace, Wanganui, Waverley**, Westland, Whakatane*, Whangarei, Whangaroa, Woodville
Agriculture
accounts for about 9% of GDP and about 10% of the work force; livestock predominates - wool, meat, dairy products all export earners; crops - wheat, barley, potatoes, pulses, fruits, vegetables; surplus producer of farm products; fish catch reached a record 503,000 metric tons in 1988
Airports
total: 108 usable: 108 with permanent-surface runways: 39 with runways over 3,659 m: 1 with runways 2,440-3,659 m: 2 with runways 1,220-2,439 m: 39
Area
total area: 268,680 sq km land area: 268,670 sq km comparative area: about the size of Colorado note: includes Antipodes Islands, Auckland Islands, Bounty Islands, Campbell Island, Chatham Islands, and Kermadec Islands
Birth rate
15.52 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Branches
New Zealand Army, Royal New Zealand Navy, Royal New Zealand Air Force
Budget
revenues: $NA expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA note: deficit $345 million (October 1993)
Capital
Wellington
Climate
temperate with sharp regional contrasts
Coastline
15,134 km
Constitution
no formal, written constitution; consists of various documents, including certain acts of the UK and New Zealand Parliaments; Constitution Act 1986 was to have come into force 1 January 1987, but has not been enacted
Currency
1 New Zealand dollar (NZ$) = 100 cents
Death rate
8.06 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Defense expenditures
exchange rate conversion - $792 million, 2% of GDP (FY90/91)
Dependent areas
Cook Islands, Niue, Tokelau
Digraph
NZ
Diplomatic representation in US
chief of mission: Ambassador Lionel John WOOD chancery: 37 Observatory Circle NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: (202) 328-4800 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles
Economic aid
donor: ODA and OOF commitments (1970-89), $526 million
Electricity
capacity: 8,000,000 kW production: 31 billion kWh consumption per capita: 9,250 kWh (1992)
Environment
current issues: deforestation; soil erosion; native flora and fauna hard-hit by species introduced from outside natural hazards: earthquakes are common, though usually not severe international agreements: party to - Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber, Wetlands, Whaling; signed, but not ratified - Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation
Ethnic divisions
European 88%, Maori 8.9%, Pacific Islander 2.9%, other 0.2%
Exchange rates
New Zealand dollars (NZ$) per US$1 - 1.7771 (January 1994), 1.8495 (1993), 1.8584 (1992), 1.7265 (1991), 1.6750 (1990), 1.6711 (1989)
Executive branch
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Dame Catherine TIZARD (since 12 December 1990) head of government: Prime Minister James BOLGER (since 29 October 1990); Deputy Prime Minister Donald McKINNON (since 2 November 1990) cabinet: Executive Council; appointed by the governor general on recommendation of the prime minister
Exports
$10.3 billion (FY93) commodities: wool, lamb, mutton, beef, fruit, fish, cheese, manufactures, chemicals, forestry products partners: Australia 18.9%, Japan 15.1%, US 12.5%, South Korea 4.1%
External debt
$35.3 billion (March 1993)
FAX
[64] (4) 472-3537 consulate(s) general: Auckland
Fiscal year
1 July - 30 June
Flag
blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant with four red five-pointed stars edged in white centered in the outer half of the flag; the stars represent the Southern Cross constellation
Highways
total: 92,648 km paved: 49,547 km unpaved: gravel, crushed stone 43,101 km
House of Representatives
(commonly called Parliament) elections last held on 6 November 1993 (next to be held NA November 1996); results - NP 35.2%, NZLP 34.7%, Alliance 18.3%, New Zealand First 8.3%; seats - (99 total) NP 50, NZLP 45, Alliance 2, New Zealand First Party 2
Imports
$9.4 billion (FY93) commodities: petroleum, consumer goods, motor vehicles, industrial equipment partners: Australia 21.1%, US 19.6%, Japan 14.7%, UK 6.3%, Germany 4.2%
Independence
26 September 1907 (from UK)
Industrial production
growth rate 1.9% (1990); accounts for about 20% of GDP
Industries
food processing, wood and paper products, textiles, machinery, transportation equipment, banking and insurance, tourism, mining
Infant mortality rate
8.9 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
2% (1993)
Inland waterways
1,609 km; of little importance to transportation
International disputes
territorial claim in Antarctica (Ross Dependency)
Irrigated land
2,800 sq km (1989 est.)
Judicial branch
High Court, Court of Appeal
Labor force
1,603,500 (June 1991) by occupation: services 67.4%, manufacturing 19.8%, primary production 9.3% (1987)
Land boundaries
0 km
Land use
arable land: 2% permanent crops: 0% meadows and pastures: 53% forest and woodland: 38% other: 7%
Languages
English (official), Maori
Legal system
based on English law, with special land legislation and land courts for Maoris; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Legislative branch
unicameral
Life expectancy at birth
total population: 76.38 years male: 72.76 years female: 80.18 years (1994 est.)
Literacy
age 15 and over can read and write (1980 est.) total population: 99% male: NA% female: NA%
Location
Southwestern Oceania, southeast of Australia in the South Pacific Ocean
Manpower availability
males age 15-49 880,576; fit for military service 741,629; reach military age (20) annually 28,242 (1994 est.)
Map references
Oceania, Standard Time Zones of the World
Maritime claims
continental shelf: 200 nm or the edge of continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm
Member of
ANZUS (US suspended security obligations to NZ on 11 August 1986), APEC, AsDB, Australia Group, C, CCC, CP, COCOM (cooperating), EBRD, ESCAP, FAO, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LORCS, MTCR, NAM (guest), OECD, PCA, SPARTECA, SPC, SPF, UN, UNAVEM II, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNOSOM, UNPROFOR, UNTAC, UNTSO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO
Merchant marine
18 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 165,514 GRT/218,699 DWT, bulk 6, cargo 2, liquefied gas 1, oil tanker 3, railcar carrier 1, roll-on/roll-off cargo 5
Names
conventional long form: none conventional short form: New Zealand
National holiday
Waitangi Day, 6 February (1840) (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty)
National product
GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $53 billion (1993)
National product per capita
$15,700 (1993)
National product real growth rate
3% (1993)
Nationality
noun: New Zealander(s) adjective: New Zealand
Natural resources
natural gas, iron ore, sand, coal, timber, hydropower, gold, limestone
Net migration rate
-1.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Note
about 80% of the population lives in cities
Overview
Since 1984 the government has been reorienting an agrarian economy dependent on a guaranteed British market to a more industrialized, open free market economy that can compete on the global scene. The government has hoped that dynamic growth would boost real incomes, broaden and deepen the technological capabilities of the industrial sector, reduce inflationary pressures, and permit the expansion of welfare benefits. The results have been mixed: inflation is down from double-digit levels, but growth was sluggish in 1988-91. In 1992-93, growth picked up to 3% annually, a sign that the new economic approach is beginning to pay off. Business confidence has strengthened, and the inflation remains among the lowest in the industrial world. Unemployment, down from 11% in 1991, remains unacceptably high at 9%.
Pipelines
petroleum products 160 km; natural gas 1,000 km; condensate (liquified petroleum gas - LPG) 150 km
Political parties and leaders
National Party (NP; government), James BOLGER; New Zealand Labor Party (NZLP; opposition), Helen CLARK; Alliance, Jim ANDERTON; Democratic Party, Dick RYAN; New Zealand Liberal Party, Hanmish MACINTYRE and Gilbert MYLES; Green Party, no official leader; Mana Motuhake, Martin RATA; Socialist Unity Party (SUP; pro-Soviet), Kenneth DOUGLAS; New Zealand First, Winston PETERS note: the New Labor, Democratic, and Mana Motuhake parties formed a coalition called the Alliance Party, Jim ANDERTON, president, in September 1991; the Green Party joined the coalition in May 1992
Population
3,388,737 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate
0.57% (1994 est.)
Ports
Auckland, Christchurch, Dunedin, Wellington, Tauranga
Railroads
4,716 km total; all 1.067-meter gauge; 274 km double track; 113 km electrified; over 99% government owned
Religions
Anglican 24%, Presbyterian 18%, Roman Catholic 15%, Methodist 5%, Baptist 2%, other Protestant 3%, unspecified or none 9% (1986)
Suffrage
18 years of age; universal
Telecommunications
excellent international and domestic systems; 2,110,000 telephones; broadcast stations - 64 AM, 2 FM, 14 TV; submarine cables extend to Australia and Fiji; 2 Pacific Ocean INTELSAT earth stations
Terrain
predominately mountainous with some large coastal plains
Total fertility rate
2.03 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Type
parliamentary democracy
Unemployment rate
9.1% (September 1993)
US diplomatic representation
chief of mission: Ambassador Josiah BEEMAN embassy: 29 Fitzherbert Terrace, Thorndon, Wellington mailing address: P. O. Box 1190, Wellington; PSC 467, Box 1, FPO AP 96531-1001 telephone: [64] (4) 472-2068