New Zealand population surpasses 5.3 mln

WELLINGTON: New Zealand’s estimated resident population reached 5,311,100 as of the end of last year, according to the statistics department Stats NZ on Wednesday.

New Zealand’s population has grown by 374,400 since 2018, an average annual increase of 1.2 percent, which is slightly below the 1.3 percent annual growth seen between 1999 and 2018, Stats NZ said.

The growth in population since 2018 is roughly equivalent to adding two cities the size of Hamilton, a city in the North Island, said Victoria Treliving, spokesperson for Stats NZ population estimates and coverage.

While natural increase, births minus deaths, has traditionally driven population growth, its impact has declined with the aging population. In contrast, net migration has become the main contributor over the past decade, though it remains volatile, Treliving said.

The Maori descent population in New Zealand passed 1 million as of June 30, 2023, which means just over one in five New Zealand residents is Maori descent, the statistics showed.

Between 2018 and 2023, the country’s Maori descent population grew 1.9 percent annually, outpacing the 1.2 percent growth of the total population, Stats NZ said.

All major ethnic groups in New Zealand saw growth between 2018 and 2023, with Asian population up 4.8 percent annually to 973,700, it said.

-Xinhua