Location

New Zealand is located next to Australia. How far is New Zealand from your place? New Zealand's area is 269, 000 sq. km; there are glacial mountains, fast flowing rivers, deep, clear lakes, hissing geysers and boiling mud. New Zealand lies within the Temperate Zone ; the climate is generally mild, and seasonal differences are not great. The resources are natural gas, iron ore, sand, coal, timber, hydropower, gold, and limestone. New Zealand's plant life is remarkable in that of the 2,000 indigenous species, about 1,500 are found nowhere else in the world. New Zealand has a large population of wild birds, including twenty-three native species.

People

The population in New Zealand is about 3,819,762 people. The population growth rate is about 1.17% a year. People in New Zealand wear the same clothing as people in Canada.
New Zealanders farm fruits such as pears , peaches, apricots, plums, cherries, and several kinds of berries. They raise sheep for meat and wool. Beef cattle are also raised. On low land, farmers grow crops such as wheat, oats, barley, and they also grow potatoes.

Economy

Jobs in New Zealand are in teaching, fishing, farming, forestry, science, engineering, government jobs, healthcare, hospitality, tourism, human resources, technology, legal, manufacturing, telecommunications, transportation, logistic, animal care, warehouse, real estate, plumbing, mining, and electricity. Workers of New Zealand, including those on farms, are guaranteed a three week annual paid vacation, and security benefits.

Travel

For transportation, New Zealanders use ferries, planes, trains, buses, cars, trucks, and vans. Communications in New Zealand include telephones, radios, televisions, computers, and newspapers. In the 1990s, about 1.5 million telephone subscribers were served. Radios numbered more than 3 million, and New Zealanders had more than 30 daily newspapers which had a combined circulation exceeding 1 million.

Life

The language spoken and written in New Zealand is English and Maori. The legislature of New Zealand has a parliament which is known as the House of Representatives. The local government in New Zealand has twelve regions and four unitary authorities, each governed by a council. The highest court is the Court Appeal, which exercises appellate jurisdiction only.
Holidays in New Zealand include Waitange Day, February 6, and CommonWealth Day. New Zealand 's religion is mostly Christian. 15% are Roman Catholic.

Education

Education in New Zealand is free and compulsory for children between ages of five and fifteen years, but children may enter school at five and continue until they are 19. In some areas subsidized kindergartens are maintained for children between three and five years of age.

By Laura Acorn