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.

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

41 00 S, 174 00 E

Oceania

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

about the size of Colorado

0 km

15,134 km

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

temperate with sharp regional contrasts

predominately mountainous with some large coastal plains

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

natural gas, iron ore, sand, coal, timber, hydropower, gold, limestone

arable land: 5.54%
permanent crops: 6.92%
other: 87.54% (2005)

2,850 sq km (2003)

earthquakes are common, though usually not severe; volcanic activity

deforestation; soil erosion; native flora and fauna hard-hit by invasive species

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

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

4,076,140 (July 2006 est.)

0-14 years: 21.1% (male 439,752/female 419,174)
15-64 years: 67.1% (male 1,374,850/female 1,361,570)
65 years and over: 11.8% (male 210,365/female 270,429) (2006 est.)

total: 33.9 years
male: 33.2 years
female: 34.7 years (2006 est.)

0.99% (2006 est.)

13.76 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

7.53 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)

3.63 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)

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 (2006 est.)

total: 5.76 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 6.59 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 4.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

total population: 78.81 years
male: 75.82 years
female: 81.93 years (2006 est.)

1.79 children born/woman (2006 est.)

0.1% (2003 est.)

1,400 (2003 est.)

less than 200 (2003 est.)

noun: New Zealander(s)
adjective: New Zealand

European 69.8%, Maori 7.9%, Asian 5.7%, Pacific islander 4.4%, other 0.5%, mixed 7.8%, unspecified 3.8% (2001 census)

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)

English (official), Maori (official)

definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99%
male: 99%
female: 99% (2003 est.)

conventional long form: none
conventional short form: New Zealand
abbreviation: NZ

parliamentary democracy

Wellington

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

Cook Islands, Niue, Tokelau

26 September 1907 (from UK)

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

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

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

18 years of age; universal

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

unicameral House of Representatives - commonly called Parliament (120 seats; 69 members elected by popular vote in single-member constituencies including seven Maori constituencies, and 51 proportional seats chosen from party lists, all to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 17 September 2005 (next to be held not later than 15 November 2008)
election results: percent of vote by party - NZLP 41.1%, NP 39.1%, NZFP 5.72%, Green Party 5.3%, Maori 2.12%, UF 2.67%, ACT New Zealand 1.51%, Progressive 1.16%; seats by party - NZLP 50, NP 48, NZFP 7, Green Party 6, Maori 4, UF 3, ACT New Zealand 2, Progressive 1
note: results of 2005 election saw the total number of seats increase to 121 because the Maori Party won one more electorate seat than its entitlement under the party vote

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

ACT New Zealand [Rodney HIDE]; Green Party [Jeanette FITZSIMONS]; Maori Party [Whatarangi WINIATA]; National Party or NP [Don BRASH]; New Zealand First Party or NZFP [Winston PETERS]; New Zealand Labor Party or NZLP [Helen CLARK]; Progressive Party [James (Jim) ANDERTON]; United Future or UF [Peter DUNNE]

NA

ANZUS (US suspended security obligations to NZ on 11 August 1986), APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, C, CP, EAS, EBRD, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, NAM (guest), NSG, OECD, OPCW, PCA, PIF, Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

chief of mission: Ambassador Roy N. FERGUSON
chancery: 37 Observatory Circle NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 328-4800
FAX: [1] (202) 667-5227
consulate(s) general: Los Angeles, New York

chief of mission: Ambassador William P. McCORMICK
embassy: 29 Fitzherbert Terrace, Thorndon, Wellington
mailing address: P. O. Box 1190, Wellington; PSC 467, Box 1, APO AP 96531-1034
telephone: [64] (4) 462-6000
FAX: [64] (4) 499-0490
consulate(s) general: Auckland

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

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 was more than $24,000 in 2005 in purchasing power parity terms. New Zealand is heavily dependent on trade - particularly in agricultural products - to drive growth. Exports are equal to about 22% 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.

$97.59 billion (2005 est.)

$97.53 billion (2005 est.)

2.5% (2005 est.)

$24,200 (2005 est.)

agriculture: 4.7%
industry: 27.8%
services: 67.6% (2005 est.)

2.13 million (2005 est.)

agriculture: 10%
industry: 25%
services: 65% (1995)

4% (2005 est.)

NA%

lowest 10%: 0.3%
highest 10%: 29.8% (1991 est.)

36.2 (1997)

3% (2005 est.)

23.6% of GDP (2005 est.)

revenues: $43.1 billion
expenditures: $37.57 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.)

21.4% of GDP (2005 est.)

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

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

0.8% (2005 est.)

39.82 billion kWh (2003)

fossil fuel: 31.6%
hydro: 57.8%
nuclear: 0%
other: 10.7% (2001)

37.03 billion kWh (2003)

0 kWh (2003)

0 kWh (2003)

31,740 bbl/day (2003 est.)

151,900 bbl/day (2003 est.)

30,220 bbl/day (2001)

119,700 bbl/day (2001)

89.62 million bbl (1 January 2002)

4.773 billion cu m (2003 est.)

4.773 billion cu m (2003 est.)

0 cu m (2001 est.)

0 cu m (2001 est.)

37.38 billion cu m (1 January 2002)

-$8.137 billion (2005 est.)

$22.21 billion (2005 est.)

dairy products, meat, wood and wood products, fish, machinery

Australia 20.9%, US 14.4%, Japan 11.2%, China 5.7%, UK 4.7% (2004)

$24.57 billion (2005 est.)

machinery and equipment, vehicles and aircraft, petroleum, electronics, textiles, plastics

Australia 22.4%, US 11.3%, Japan 11.2%, China 9.7%, Germany 5.2% (2004)

$5.498 billion (2005 est.)

$57.67 billion (2005 est.)

ODA, $99.7 million

New Zealand dollar (NZD)

NZD

New Zealand dollars per US dollar - 1.4203 (2005), 1.5087 (2004), 1.7221 (2003), 2.1622 (2002), 2.3788 (2001)

1 July - 30 June

1,800,500 (2004)

3.027 million (2004)

general assessment: excellent domestic and international systems
domestic: NA
international: country code - 64; submarine cables to Australia and Fiji; 8 satellite earth stations - 1 InMarSat (Pacific Ocean), 7 other

AM 124, FM 290, shortwave 4 (1998)

3.75 million (1997)

41 (plus 52 medium-power repeaters and over 650 low-power repeaters) (1997)

1.926 million (1997)

.nz

751,719 (2005)

36 (2000)

3.2 million (2005)

117 (2005)

total: 46
over 3,047 m: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 11
914 to 1,523 m: 27
under 914 m: 5 (2005)

total: 71
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 30
under 914 m: 39 (2005)

gas 2,213 km; liquid petroleum gas 79 km; oil 160 km; refined products 304 km (2004)

total: 3,898 km
narrow gauge: 3,898 km 1.067-m gauge (506 km electrified) (2004)

total: 92,662 km
paved: 59,109 km (including 169 km of expressways)
unpaved: 33,553 km (2003)

total: 13 ships (1000 GRT or over) 125,916 GRT/121,394 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 3, cargo 2, passenger/cargo 4, petroleum tanker 2, roll on/roll off 2
foreign-owned: 4 (Australia 2, Germany 1, Isle of Man 1)
registered in other countries: 6 (The Bahamas 1, Marshall Islands 1, Panama 1, UK 1, Vanuatu 2) (2005)

Auckland, Lyttelton, Tauranga, Wellington, Whangarei

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

17 years of age for voluntary military service; soldiers cannot be deployed until the age of 18 (2001)

males age 17-49: 984,700
females age 17-49: 965,170 (2005 est.)

males age 17-49: 809,519
females age 17-49: 802,069 (2005 est.)

males age 18-49: 29,738
females age 17-49: 28,523 (2005 est.)

$1.147 billion (FY03/04)

1% (FY02)

asserts a territorial claim in Antarctica (Ross Dependency) [see Antarctica]