Changing face of Western Bay

Korean mother Julie Kim and Japanese mother Yuko Fujimoto are just two of the 8235 people who identify themselves as Asian and who now call Tauranga home.

The increasing diversity of the Western Bay was highlighted in the latest census figures released this week.

In total, 79 per cent of residents identified themselves as European in the Tauranga City and Western Bay District Council areas in the latest census compared with 90 per cent in 2006.

The number of people who identified themselves as being of Asian ethnicity rose by 86 per cent to 8235 and the number of people who spoke Tagalog (the main language of the Philippines) and Korean more than doubled.

The number of Tagalog speakers rose 156.7 per cent to 516 and the number of Korean speakers increased by 115.9 per cent to 531.

Mrs Kim moved to Tauranga a year ago so her primary-school-aged children could learn English. "My children didn't like to study in Korea but they are really enjoying to study English and maths in Tauranga so I'm satisfied," she said. "They don't get stress from study. After study they go outside and play."

There was little time to play and few grassy outdoor areas or trees to climb in Korea, she said.

The plan was to spend two years in New Zealand before rejoining her husband in Korea, but the family might stay longer.

"Many Korean mothers say, 'one more year, one more year, one more year'," she said. "The nature is very nice. Very beautiful."

Most Korean employees were entitled to just seven days' holiday a year but Mrs Kim's husband's workplace had allowed him to make two 10-day visits this year.

Her children had learned English at school and through the language academy but Mrs Kim relied on classes and coffee groups run by the Tauranga Regional Multicultural Council to improve her English.

The nuclear disaster in Fukushima after the 2011 tsunami prompted Mrs Fujimoto and her husband and children to move to New Zealand.

"We did not get direct damage but my husband and I are thinking the food in Japan is not safe anymore so we decided to grow my children in another country," she said. "I think that New Zealand is a very safe country than any other country in the world so we are here now." Mrs Fujimoto was not sure how long her family would be allowed to stay in the country but hoped they would be here for many years. "We want to be here for a long time."

Latest census figures show 18.2 per cent of Tauranga and Western Bay residents were born overseas. That is an increase of 27 per cent taking the number of foreign-born residents to 28,998.