New Zealand - A Country Overview
Information on New Zealand; its place geographically, history, government, climate, security, tourism and foreigners living in New Zealand.
New Zealand or Aotearoa in Maori (translated as 'Land of Long White Cloud') is situated in Oceania. It is a remote nation in the southwest Pacific Ocean and consists of two main islands and many smaller ones.
New Zealand has three official languages: English, Maori and New Zealand Sign Language. As the main language of the deaf community, New Zealand Sign Language was made an official national language in 2006. English is used by over 98 percent of the population.
The capital city of New Zealand is Wellington in the North Island. The capital is the country's third largest city by population; the largest city in New Zealand is Auckland which is also found in the North Island. Other notable cities include Christchurch, Hamilton Urban Area, Napier-Hastings Urban Area, Tauranga and Dunedin.
New Zealand has an estimated population of 4.4 million. There are an average of 16 inhabitants per square Km or 41 per square mile.
The predominant religion is Christianity with 55 percent of people surveyed in the 2006 census identifying themselves as Christians. Other minority religions make up four percent of the population including Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism and the Maori church Ratana.
Geography
New Zealand has two main islands called the North and South Islands and some 31 other islands such as Auckland Island, Stewart Island and the Chatham Islands - many of which are unpopulated. The two main islands are separated by the Cook Strait, which is 22 Km wide at its narrowest point.
Other territories fall under the Realm of New Zealand. These are countries in varying degrees of devolution that have Queen Elizabeth II as head of state and include the Cook Islands, Niue, Tokelau and Ross Dependency.
In total, New Zealand has a long coastline of over 15,000 Km. It is a long, thin archipelago that stretches nearly 1,600 Km in length and 400 Km in width. It covers some 166,000 square Km with the South Island being the largest landmass in the country. Its nearest neighbours are Australia to the northwest and Tonga and Fiji to the north.
The country commands the seventh largest Exclusive Economic Zone in the world, which covers over two million square Km of sea.
As it is situated on the boundary of the Pacific and Indo-Australian plates, New Zealand is subject to a high level of seismic activity. Its landscapes are also testament to its location providing dramatic and varied backdrops.
The South Island is characterised by the Southern Alps mountain range that runs down the spine of the island. The range includes 18 peaks over 3,000 metres in height, the highest of which is Mount Cook at 3754 metres. To the east of the island lie the Canterbury Plains, while the west is famous for its rugged coastlines and glaciers.
The North Island has less mountainous but more volcanic areas. Mount Ruapehu is an active volcano in the Tongariro National Park and is 2797 metres high. Another notable feature of the North Island is Lake Taupo, created by the Oruanui eruption of the Taupo volcano, which is considered the largest eruption the world has seen in the last 70,000 years.
History
Due to its remoteness, New Zealand was one of the last habitable places to be settled by humans. It is estimated that the first humans to arrive to the islands were the Polynesians between 1250 and 1300AD who started the Maori culture.
Maori society was based on family ties and land ownership organised under chieftains. Territorial warfare was a part of life and chieftains had to demonstrate their strength and leadership abilities to avoid being overthrown. The Maoris recorded historical events orally through songs, chants and dances, as well as visually with tattoos, weaving and wood carving.
First European contact with the area was made in 1642 by Dutch seafarer Abel Janszoon Tasman of the United East India Company. When he landed, he and his crew were attacked by Maori resulting in a number of deaths on each side. Unbeknown to Tasman he had landed in a major agricultural Maori centre.
Over the years the area was regularly visited by European explorers, including Captain James Cook in 1769, missionaries, traders and seafarers. Apart from a few notable exceptions, most contact between the Maori and the Europeans was peaceful; however, European influence changed Maori culture. Some Maori tribes with frequent contact with the west were able to trade muskets, which had an enormous impact on warfare. Until the majority of tribes had acquired guns by 1835, those with them were able to kill and enslave those without. As a result the musket became a very valuable trading item and the Maori would offer huge quantities of goods to the Europeans in exchange.
European settlement of the islands increased during the 19th century. Many Europeans bought land from the Maori but bitterness soon set in which led to conflict between the indigenous population and the new settlers. During this time many Maori converted to Christianity and it was European missionaries that encouraged the British crown to exert some authority over lawless sailors and settlers in the area.
In 1832 James Busby was appointed by the British government as Official Resident. He encouraged the Maori chiefs to sign the Declaration of Independence proclaiming New Zealand's sovereign independence. This had little effect on the attitude of other European settlers and did nothing to control European population and settlement.
In 1839 more planned colonialism and increased lawlessness from established settlers spurred the British government to send Captain William Hobson to persuade the Maori to cede their sovereignty to the British.
In 1840 the British crown signed the Treaty of Waitangi with numerous Maori chiefs. This saw the territory become part of the Commonwealth and gave all Maori equal rights to British citizens.
The newly appointed Governor of New Zealand, George Grey, in 1845 promoted cultural assimilation and reduced land ownership. Over time, this led to most land becoming European owned and many Maori becoming impoverished.
The end of the 19th century saw mass immigration to the area. People from Britain, the USA, Eastern Europe and China moved to New Zealand and the immigrant population reached one million people by 1911.
In the 1890s the first liberal government was formed in New Zealand and the country led the way with the introduction of the women's vote and old age pensions. The economy changed too, with the focus moving away from wool to the export of frozen food stuffs.
New Zealand contributed over 100,000 troops (both European and Maori descent) to each of the two world wars on the side of the Allies. The suffering and spirit of those that fought for their country is remembered by an annual public holiday on the 25th April in New Zealand and Australia called ANZAC day.
The Great Depression of the 1930s saw the country introduce a welfare state while Maori culture underwent a change that saw many flocking to the cities to work and live. By 1940 town planners described Zealand as "possibly the third most urbanised country in the world".
Following Britain's entry into the EEC in 1973, New Zealand's export market to the United Kingdom suffered badly. This led to the then Prime Minister Robert Muldoon to re-evaluate New Zealand's economic markets and its priorities. He signed a Closer Economic Relations deal with Australia to promote free trade between the two nations.
The 1980s saw many social and economic reforms that changed the country. Although improving the stability of the economy many measures led to increased unemployment and a cut in government spending. Social reform featured policies such as the relaxation of immigration laws, which saw an influx of migrants from Asia, as well as the legalisation of homosexuality, and other governmental innovations.
Politics and Government
New Zealand is a constitutional monarchy with Queen Elizabeth II as the head of state, and it has a parliamentary democracy. The Governor-General who is appointed under advice from the elected Prime Minister is the Queen's representative in New Zealand. It is the role of the Governor-General to appoint members of the cabinet and exercise other prerogative powers. The rather formal power of the Queen and the Governor-General is limited by a number of constraints laid down in New Zealand's constitution.
Parliament is formed by the Sovereign (represented by the Governor-General) and the House of Representatives. The House of Representatives is democratically elected using a mixed proportional representation system. It affords every electorate two votes: one for one of the 65 available electoral seats and one for a party. After allocating the electoral seats, the remaining 55 seats are proportionately allocated according to the results of the 'party' vote.
The Prime Minister of the country is not directly elected but is traditionally the leader of the party or coalition with the majority of seats.
Local government in New Zealand lies in 16 regions, which consist of 13 city councils, 53 district councils and the Chatham Islands Council.
The judicial system or Supreme Court of New Zealand is independent from government. Made up of the Court of Appeal and the High Court and headed by the Chief Justice, judges and judicial officers are not politically appointed.
Economy
New Zealand has a developed market economy with a gross domestic product of about $28,000 per person. It is heavily dependent on trade with Europe, Australia, the US and Asia with agricultural products, horticulture, fishing forestry and mining being the most significant export products.
Since the 1990s the traditional export of wool steadily declined and has been replaced by the export of dairy produce. In 2009 dairy produce accounted for 21 percent of the country's product exports. Other agricultural exports include meat, wool, fishing, wine and fruit.
The largest sector in the economy is the service sector, followed by manufacturing, construction, farming and mineral extraction.
New Zealand is ranked at number three in the world on the Ease of Doing Business scale, behind Singapore and Hong Kong. It was also ranked the third most developed country according to the United Nations Development Index.
The currency in New Zealand is the New Zealand Dollar, which is valued at approximately $0.80 US Dollars.
Climate
New Zealand has a mild maritime climate that is mostly cool to warm temperate. Average temperatures range from the mid-20s to 30 degrees centigrade in the summer months to between five and 15 degrees centigrade in the winter. Mean annual temperatures range from ten degrees centigrade in the south to 16 degrees in the north. The three largest cities, Auckland, Christchurch and Wellington all receive over 2,000 hours of sunshine a year.
The country has differing rainfall depending on the area. Places west of the Southern Alps region are decidedly wet with average rainfall of around 8,000mm a year, while the semi-arid area of Central Otago receives around 300mm. Christchurch is the driest city in the country while Auckland is the wettest.
Security
As a developed country, New Zealand has little or no security concerns. It is always advisable for those wishing to visit New Zealand however, to check before travelling. Many western countries still remain at risk from sporadic terrorist attacks.
According to the Corruption Perceptions Index, New Zealand ranks as the least corrupt country in the world.
Immigration
An Immigration act was passed in 1987 that ended a preference for migrants from Europe or North America. Instead, migrants were classed according to their skills and the potential contribution they could make to New Zealand society and the economy. From as early as the 1990s, people living in the country represented over 120 countries.
New Zealand has one the highest populations of foreign-born citizens in the world while, conversely, in 2005 over 20 percent of New Zealand nationals were born overseas.
In 2005, sources revealed that the most number of migrants to New Zealand came from China and Britain each contributing over 5,000 people, while immigration from the USA, South Africa and India each totalled between 1,000 and 4,999 people.
The 2006 census revealed 67.6 percent of people identified themselves as being of European decent and 14.6 percent as Maori.
Tourism
Tourism plays a major role in New Zealand's economy with visitor numbers increasing year on year. It employs nearly ten percent of the total work force and contributes around $15 billion a year to the country's GDP.
New Zealand benefits from outstanding scenery, long beaches, mountains, volcanoes, flora, fauna and lakes. It is widely known for its adventure tourism, hiking and camping as well as attracting visitors for the history and the culture of the Maori. There are 25 marine reserves and 14 national parks which protect the country's beauty and are dotted along the entire length of the islands.
In September 2009, it was estimated that 2.4 million international tourists visited the country.
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