NEW ZEALAND
GEOGRAPHY
Total area: 268,680 km2; land area: 268,670 km2; includes
Antipodes Islands, Auckland Islands, Bounty Islands, Campbell Island,
Chatham Islands, and Kermadec Islands
Comparative area: about the size of Colorado
Land boundaries: none
Coastline: 15,134 km
Maritime claims:
Continental shelf: edge of continental margin or 200 nm;
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm;
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Disputes: territorial claim in Antarctica (Ross Dependency)
Climate: temperate with sharp regional contrasts
Terrain: predominately mountainous with some large coastal plains
Natural resources: natural gas, iron ore, sand, coal, timber,
hydropower, gold, limestone
Land use: arable land 2%; permanent crops 0%; meadows and pastures
53%; forest and woodland 38%; other 7%; includes irrigated 1%
Environment: earthquakes are common, though usually not severe
PEOPLE
Population: 3,308,973 (July 1991), growth rate 0.4% (1991)
Birth rate: 15 births/1,000 population (1991)
Death rate: 8 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
Net migration rate: - 3 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
Infant mortality rate: 10 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
Life expectancy at birth: 72 years male, 79 years female (1991)
Total fertility rate: 1.9 children born/woman (1991)
Nationality: noun--New Zealander(s); adjective--New Zealand
Ethnic divisions: European 88%, Maori 8.9%, Pacific Islander
2.9%, other 0.2%
Religion: Anglican 24%, Presbyterian 18%, Roman Catholic 15%,
Methodist 5%, Baptist 2%, other Protestant 3%, unspecified or none
9% (1986)
Language: English (official), Maori
Literacy: 99% (male NA%, female NA%) age 15 and over can
read and write (1970)
Labor force: 1,591,900; services 67.4%, manufacturing 19.8%,
primary production 9.3% (1987)
Organized labor: 681,000 members; 43% of labor force (1986)
GOVERNMENT
Long-form name: none; abbreviated NZ
Type: parliamentary democracy
Capital: Wellington
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
Dependent areas: Cook Islands, Niue, Tokelau
Independence: 26 September 1907 (from UK)
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
Legal system: based on English law, with special land legislation
and land courts for Maoris; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with
reservations
National holiday: Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established
British sovereignty), 6 February (1840)
Executive branch: British monarch, governor general, prime
minister, deputy prime minister, Cabinet
Legislative branch: unicameral House of Representatives (commonly
called Parliament)
Judicial branch: High Court, Court of Appeal
Leaders:
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)
Political parties and leaders:
National Party (NP; government), James BOLGER;
New Zealand Labor Party (NZLP; opposition), Michael MOORE;
New Labor Party (NLP), Jim ANDERTON;
Democratic Party, Neil MORRISON;
Green Party, no official leader;
Socialist Unity Party (SUP; pro-Soviet), Kenneth DOUGLAS
Suffrage: universal at age 18
Elections:
House of Representatives--last held on 27 October 1990 (next to be
held October 1993);
results--NP 49%, LP 35%, Green Party 7%, New Labor 5%;
seats--(97 total) NP 67, LP 29, NLP 1
Communists: SUP about 140, other groups, about 200
Member of: ANZUS (US suspended security obligations to NZ on
11 August 1986), APEC, AsDB, C, CCC, CP, EBRD, ESCAP, FAO, GATT, IAEA,
IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT,
INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LORCS, OECD, PCA,
SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIIMOG, UNTSO, UPU, WHO, WIPO,
WMO
Diplomatic representation: Ambassador-designate Denis Bazely
Gordon McLEAN; Chancery at 37 Observatory Circle NW, Washington DC 20008;
telephone (202) 328-4800; there are New Zealand Consulates General in Los
Angeles and New York;
US--Ambassador Della M. NEWMAN; Embassy at 29 Fitzherbert Terrace,
Thorndon, Wellington (mailing address is P. O. Box 1190, Wellington, or
FPO San Francisco 96690-0001); telephone 64 (4) 722-068; there is a US
Consulate General in Auckland
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
ECONOMY
Overview: Since 1984 the government has been reorienting an
agrarian economy dependent on a guaranteed British market to an open
free market economy that can compete on the global scene. The government
has hoped that dynamic growth would boost real incomes, reduce
inflationary pressures, and permit the expansion of welfare benefits. The
results have been mixed: inflation is down from double-digit levels
but growth has been sluggish and unemployment, always a highly sensitive
issue, has been at a record high 7.4%. In 1988 GDP fell by 1%, in
1989 grew by a moderate 2.4%, and was flat in 1990.
GDP: $40.2 billion, per capita $12,200; real growth rate 0.7%
(1990)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 6.5% (FY90)
Unemployment rate: 7.4% (March 1990)
Budget: revenues $17.6 billion; expenditures $18.3 billion,
including capital expenditures of $NA (FY91 est.)
Exports: $8.8 billion (f.o.b., FY90);
commodities--wool, lamb, mutton, beef, fruit, fish, cheese,
manufactures, chemicals, forestry products;
partners--EC 18.3%, Japan 17.9%, Australia 17.5%, US 13.5%,
China 3.6%, South Korea 3.1%
Imports: $8.1 billion (f.o.b., FY90);
commodities--petroleum, consumer goods, motor vehicles, industrial
equipment;
partners--Australia 19.7%, Japan 16.9%, EC 16.9%, US 15.3%,
Taiwan 3.0%
External debt: $17.4 billion (1989)
Industrial production: growth rate 1.9% (1990); accounts for
about 20% of GDP
Electricity: 7,800,000 kW capacity; 28,000 million kWh produced,
8,500 kWh per capita (1990)
Industries: food processing, wood and paper products, textiles,
machinery, transportation equipment, banking and insurance, tourism,
mining
Agriculture: accounts for about 9% of GNP and 10% of the
work force; livestock predominates--wool, meat, dairy products all export
earners; crops--wheat, barley, potatoes, pulses, fruits, and
vegetables; surplus producer of farm products; fish catch reached a
record 503,000 metric tons in 1988
Economic aid: donor--ODA and OOF commitments (1970-89), $526
million
Currency: New Zealand dollar (plural--dollars);
1 New Zealand dollar (NZ$) = 100 cents
Exchange rates: New Zealand dollars (NZ$) per US$1--1.6798 (January
1991), 1.6750 (1990), 1.6711 (1989), 1.5244 (1988), 1.6886 (1987), 1.9088
(1986), 2.0064 (1985)
Fiscal year: 1 July-30 June
COMMUNICATIONS
Railroads: 4,716 km total; all 1.067-meter gauge; 274 km double
track; 113 km electrified; over 99% government owned
Highways: 92,648 km total; 49,547 km paved, 43,101 km gravel or
crushed stone
Inland waterways: 1,609 km; of little importance to transportation
Pipelines: 1,000 km natural gas; 160 km refined products; 150 km
condensate
Ports: Auckland, Christchurch, Dunedin, Wellington, Tauranga
Merchant marine: 21 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 204,269
GRT/281,375 DWT; includes 5 cargo, 1 container, 4 roll-on/roll-off cargo,
1 railcar carrier, 4 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker,
1 liquefied gas, 5 bulk
Civil air: about 40 major transport aircraft
Airports: 157 total, 157 usable; 33 with permanent-surface runways;
none with runways over 3,659 m; 2 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 46 with
runways 1,220-2,439 m
Telecommunications: excellent international and domestic systems;
2,110,000 telephones; stations 64 AM, 2 FM, 14 TV; submarine cables
extend to Australia and Fiji; 2 Pacific Ocean INTELSAT earth stations
DEFENSE FORCES
Branches: New Zealand Army, Royal New Zealand Navy, Royal New
Zealand Air Force
Manpower availability: males 15-49, 874,443; 740,831 fit for
military service; 28,814 reach military age (20) annually
Defense expenditures: $832 million, 1-2% of GDP (FY90)