What's in this Chapter?

• Population growth
• Ethnicity
• Age
• Families and households
• Disabilities
• Maori wellbeing

Key Results

• The 12 cities account for 55.6% of New Zealand’s population.
• The cities have grown at an average of 10.3% from 2001 to 2006, faster than the national average.
86.1% of New Zealand’s total population growth in the next 20 years is projected to take place in the 12 cities.
• City populations are very mobile with 43.6% of residents shifting address in the five years to 2006.
• The ethnic mix in our cities is continuing to change, with Asian, Pacific Islands and the newly created New Zealander ethnic groups growing the fastest.
• Our cities have higher proportions of Asian (13.9%) and Pacific Islands (9.9%) people compared to the rest of New Zealand (2.4% for both ethnic groups).
• Despite the national trend of an ageing population, eight of the 12 cities have a median age younger than the national median of 35.9 years.
• Rodney, Tauranga, North Shore and Christchurch respectively have a median age higher than the national median and this trend is expected to continue in these four cities.
• Manukau and Porirua have the youngest populations, with just over a quarter of their population under 15 years of age.
• One-family households are the dominant form of households in our cities, with around two-thirds this type.

People

This chapter describes the differences and similarities between population groups within and between the 12 cities and the rest of New Zealand. The pace of change within the cities and the diversity of their people impacts on outcomes in all chapters of this report.

Why this is Important

Information about the people in New Zealand’s 12 cities helps us to understand the nature of urban
communities and how they are changing. It can help decision makers anticipate potential pressures on the wider social, economic and physical environments. Factors such as population growth, age, ethnicity, migration and household makeup are often key determinants of conditions across a whole range of issues affecting quality of life.

Key Points

The 12 cities collectively make up more than half of New Zealand’s population (55.6%). It is projected that 86.1% of New Zealand’s total population growth over the period 2006 to 2026 will take place in the 12 cities, with two thirds (65.9%) of total growth occurring in the five cities in the Auckland region. In absolute numbers, Auckland and Manukau will make the greatest contribution to New Zealand’s total population growth.

Internal migration is a significant contributor to population change. Half of our cities experienced population growth through net internal migration. There are considerable differences in the sociodemographic makeup of the 12 cities. The cities are changing in their ethnic diversity, with Asian and Pacific Islands populations growing the fastest. The cities have higher proportions of both these ethnic groups compared with the rest of New Zealand.

The median age in most of our 12 cities remains slightly younger than the national median, in part due to the younger Maori and Pacific Islands populations, but also because cities have a higher proportion of people in the tertiary trained and working age groups of 15 to 44 years.

One-family households dominate in our cities, accounting for around two thirds of all households. City populations are very mobile with 43.6% of residents shifting address between 2001 and 2006.

Population Growth

• The 12 cities account for just over half of New Zealand’s population.
• Since 2001, the 12 cities have grown, on average, faster than the national average.
• Half of our cities have experienced population growth from net internal migration in the last five years.

Ethnicity

• The ethnic mix in our cities is continuing to change, with Asian, Pacific Islands and the newly created ‘New Zealander’ ethnic groups growing the fastest.
• Our cities have higher proportions of Asian and Pacific Islands people compared with the rest of New Zealand.

Age

• Manukau and Porirua have the youngest populations with just over a quarter of their population under 15 years of age.
• Despite the national trend of an ageing population, eight of the 12 cities have a median age younger than the national median of 35.9 years.

Families and Households

• The number of households in Rodney is increasing at more than double the national growth rate for households.
• One-family households are the dominant form of households in the 12 cities, reflecting the national composition of households.
• Manukau has the highest proportion of households with two or more families.