New Zealand

The following is the entry for New Zealand from the CIA World Fact Book, 1992 edition.

: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

:New Zealand People

Population:

3,347,369 (July 1992), growth rate 0.7% (1992)

Birth rate:

16 births/1,000 population (1992)

Death rate:

8 deaths/1,000 population (1992)

Net migration rate:

-2 migrants/1,000 population (1992)

Infant mortality rate:

9 deaths/1,000 live births (1992)

Life expectancy at birth:

72 years male, 80 years female (1992)

Total fertility rate:

2.1 children born/woman (1992)

Nationality:

noun - New Zealander(s); adjective - New Zealand

Ethnic divisions:

European 88%, Maori 8.9%, Pacific Islander 2.9%, other 0.2%

Religions:

Anglican 24%, Presbyterian 18%, Roman Catholic 15%, Methodist 5%, Baptist 2%, other Protestant 3%, unspecified or none 9% (1986)

Languages:

English (official), Maori

Literacy:

99% (male NA%, female NA%) age 15 and over can read and write (1970)

Labor force:

1,603,500 (June 1991); services 67.4%, manufacturing 19.8%, primary production 9.3% (1987)

Organized labor:

681,000 members; 43% of labor force (1986)

:New Zealand 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

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

Dependent areas:

Cook Islands, Niue, Tokelau

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; NewLabor Party (NLP), 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; note - the New Labor, Democratic, and Mana Motuhake parties formed a coalition in September 1991; the Green Party joined the coalition in May 1992

:New Zealand Government

Suffrage:

universal at age 18

Elections:

House of Representatives:

last held on 27 October 1990 (next to be held October 1993); results - NP 49%, NZLP 35%, Green Party 7%, NLP 5%; seats - (97 total) NP 67, NZLP 29, NLP 1

Member of:

ANZUS (US suspended security obligations to NZ on 11 August 1986), APEC, AsDB, Australia Group, C, CCC, CP, COCOM, (cooperating country), 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, OECD, PCA, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIIMOG, UNTSO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO

Diplomatic representation:

Ambassador - 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; PSC 467, Box 1, FPO AP 96531-1001); telephone [64] (4) 722-068; FAX [64] (4) 723-537; 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

:New Zealand 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 exceeded 10% since May 1991. In 1988, GDP fell by 1%, in 1989 grew by a moderate 2.4%, and was flat in 1990-91.

GDP:

purchasing power equivalent - $46.2 billion, per capita $14,000; real growth rate - 0.4% (1991 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):

1.0% (1991)

Unemployment rate:

10.7% (September 1991)

Budget:

revenues $17.6 billion; expenditures $18.3 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY91 est.)

Exports:

$9.4 billion (f.o.b., FY91)

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:

$8.4 billion (f.o.b., FY91)

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 GDP 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 - 1.8245 (March 1992), 1.7265 (1991), 1.6750 (1990), 1.6711 (1989), 1.5244 (1988), 1.6886 (1987)

Fiscal year:

1 July - 30 June

:New Zealand 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:

natural gas 1,000 km; petroleum products 160 km; condensate 150 km

Ports:

Auckland, Christchurch, Dunedin, Wellington, Tauranga

Merchant marine:

18 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 182,206 GRT/246,446 DWT; includes 2 cargo, 5 roll-on/roll-off, 1 railcar carrier, 4 oil tanker, 1 liquefied gas, 5 bulk

Civil air:

about 40 major transport aircraft

Airports:

118 total, 118 usable; 34 with permanent-surface runways; none with runways over 3,659 m; 2 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 43 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

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

:New Zealand Defense Forces

Branches:

New Zealand Army, Royal New Zealand Navy, Royal New Zealand Air Force

Manpower availability:

males 15-49, 874,703; 739,923 fit for military service; 30,297 reach military age (20) annually

Defense expenditures:

exchange rate conversion - $792 million, 2% of GDP (FY92)

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