Population size
At the time of the 2006 Census there were around 757,000 young people aged 12 to 24 living in New Zealand.
Young people in this age group represent around 19 percent of the total New Zealand population - in other words, nearly one in five New Zealanders is aged 12 to 24.
As in other developed countries, the New Zealand population is ageing. However, due to the ‘baby blip’ of the late 1980s and early 1990s, the number of young people currently aged 12 to 18 is larger than older cohorts. This may place pressure on services and resources for youth in the short-term.
Size of the youth population aged 12 to 24, by single year of age, 2006
Source: Statistics New Zealand, Census
The number of young people aged 12 to 24 is expected to continue to grow over the next decade, as shown in the figure below.
Over the medium and longer-term, population ageing means that the proportion of young people in the population will fall, though the number will continue to increase.
Historical and projected size of the population aged 12 to 24 years, selected years 1986-2026
Source: Statistics New Zealand, Census and population projections (2006 base), Series 5
