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Kōrero: Africans

Whārangi 4: Facts and figures

Ethnic identity

In the New Zealand census, people were asked to indicate the ethnic group or groups with which they identified. Listed below are the numbers of people who identified with ethnicities relevant to the African story. The numbers include those who indicated more than one group.

  • African: 4,053 (2006); 6,819 (2013); 7,221 (2018)
  • Somali: 2,319 (2006); 1,614 (2013); 1,701 (2018)
  • Ethiopian: 1,029 (2006); 1,245 (2013); 1,635 (2018)
  • Other African: 1,110 (2006); 1,245 (2013); 1,005 (2018)

Country of birth

The New Zealand census figures listed here show the number of residents born in Africa or African countries (excluding South Africa).

Africa

  • 1874 census: 68
  • 1901 census: 103 (non-British Africa only)
  • 1951 census: 239

Kenya

  • 1976 census: 906
  • 2001 census: 1,152
  • 2006 census: 1,509
  • 2013 census: 1,647
  • 2018 census: 1,869

Rhodesia

  • 1976 census: 522

Zimbabwe

  • 2001 census: 2,889
  • 2006 census: 8,148
  • 2013 census: 8,100
  • 2018 census: 8,685

Zambia

  • 1976 census: 450
  • 2001 census: 948
  • 2006 census: 1,314
  • 2013 census: 1,416
  • 2018 census: 1,536

Ethiopia

  • 2001 census: 654
  • 2006 census: 930
  • 2013 census: 1,140
  • 2018 census: 1,479

Somalia

  • 2001 census: 1,770
  • 2006 census: 1,857
  • 2013 census: 1,104
  • 2018 census: 1,134

Other Sub-Sahara Africa

  • 2001 census: 3,408
  • 2006 census: 3,681
  • 2013 census: 4,398
  • 2018 census: 5,574

United Arab Republic (Egypt)

  • 1976 census: 451

Egypt

  • 2001 census: 1,179
  • 2006 census: 1,344
  • 2013 census: 1,275
  • 2018 census: 1,713
Ki mua Whai muri: Whārangi 5. Hononga, rauemi nō waho Whai muri

Me pēnei te tohu i te whārang

Carl Walrond, Africans – Facts and figures, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/mi/africans/page-4 (accessed 4 June 2026).

He kōrero nā Carl Walrond, i tāngia i te 4 March 2009, updated 1 July 2024.