New Zealand’s population continues to diversify according to the Census 2023 population count.
Results released today show the number of Pacific people has increased since the 2018 census from 381,642, to 442,632 in 2023. That’s a 16.9% increase in the Pacific population.
This also means Pacific people now make up 8.9 percent of the total population of nearly five million.
The 35th Census of Population and Dwellings was held in March 2023. According to Statistics NZ, the population count was 4,999,923.
This is an increase of 6.3 percent from the 2018 Census of 4,699,755.
And while the population has grown by almost 300,000, almost one million New Zealanders identified as of Māori descent.
Other results also show the population continues to age while Auckland continues to be the most populous region with 1.66 million people.
Three out of four New Zealanders live in the North Island with Selwyn and Queenstown still the fastest growing territorial authorities.