The life expectancy of New Zealanders continues to rise, according to figures issued by Statistics New Zealand today.
But the figures again highlighted the significant longevity advantage of non-Maori over Maori, and the fact women live longer than men.
Based on mortality in 2000-2002, a newborn girl can expect to live 81.1years and a newborn boy 76.3 years.
These represent gains of 1.4 years for women and 1.9 years for men since 1995-1997.
Statistics NZ said three-quarters of these gains were because of reduced mortality rates in the late working and retirement ages (50-89 years). Mortality rates among young adults (15-24 years) and infants also declined significantly.
The gap in life expectancy between men and women continues to narrow. Newborn females can expect to outlive newborn males by 4.8 years in 2000-2002, down from a peak 6.4 years in 1975-1977.
There is an average longevity difference between Maori and non-Maori of about 8.5 years.
Life expectancy at birth for females of Maori ethnicity was 73.2 years compared with 81.9 years for non-Maori females, while Maori men had a life expectancy at birth of 69 years, compared with 77.2 years for non-Maori.
The average difference between Maori and non-Maori of about 8.5 years has dropped from the 9.1 years estimated difference in 1995-1997.
Lower non-Maori mortality rates between the ages of 50 and 74 account for more than 60 per cent of the difference between Maori and non-Maori life expectancy at birth.
