About the District
Far North District Overview The Far North is the northernmost district in New Zealand and shares its southern boundary with Kaipara and Whangarei Districts. The remainder of the district is surrounded by sea. The District has 8 harbours and has a coastline of 1,756 kilometres, however, if all islands and rocky outcrops are taken into account, the coastline becomes 2,194 kilometres.
Together, the three districts make up the Northland Region. With 7,323.86 km2, the Far North District is the largest of the three districts and is ranked number 3 in terms of land area covered by district and city councils in New Zealand.
The Far North boasts a sub-tropical climate zone (warm humid summers and mild winters ) with typical summer daytime maximum air temperatures ranging from 22°C to 26°C and winter daytime maximum air temperatures ranging from 12°C to 17°C. Annual sunshine hours average about 2000.
The District's labour force totals 19,080 people employed by 7,369 businesses. People as well as communities throughout the district are diverse in heritage, culture and knowledge. This diversity gives the District's people the opportunity to make lifestyle choices.
The 2006 census estimates the usually-resident population of the Far North District as 55,845 living in 20,712 households; and at the time of the census 43.9% (24,500 persons) of the District's population indicated that they belonged to the New Zealand Maori ethnic group. The national figure is 14.9%.
The Far North receives a large influx of holiday makers and tourists who it is estimated doubles the population (110,000 plus) in the district during the summer holiday months and in some coastal settlements the population more than triples.
Major revenue earning industries for the Far North are agriculture (agriculture, horticulture & forestry), education and tourism (accommodation, cafes and restaurants).
Page created/updated: 3 June 2009 at 2:13 pm
