Matamata-Piako District
Matamata-Piako District is a local government area in the Waikato region of New Zealand. It lies to the east of the city of Hamilton. Geography. The district encompasses the southern end of the Hauraki Plains and much of the Thames Valley, and is bounded in the east by the Kaimai Range. The rivers Piako and Waihou run through the district. The towns of Matamata, Morrinsville and Te Aroha are all within the district, with the Council's head office based in Te Aroha. The main industry in the region is dairy farming and Thoroughbred breeding and  training. Other communities in the district include Mangateparu and Waitoa. Populated places. Matamata-Piako District consists of the following towns, localities, settlements and communities: Demographics. Matamata-Piako District covers and had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km. people live in Morrinsville, in Matamata, and in Te Aroha. Matamata-Piako District had a population of 34,404 at the 2018 New Zealand census, an increase of 2,868 people (9.1%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 3,921 people (12.9%) since the 2006 census. There were 12,873 households. There were 17,001 males and 17,403  females, giving a sex ratio of 0.98 males per female. The median age was 40.8 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 6,999 people (20.3%) aged under 15 years, 6,186 (18.0%) aged 15 to 29, 14,436 (42.0%) aged 30 to 64, and 6,783 (19.7%) aged 65 or older. Ethnicities were 84.4% European/Pākehā, 16.7% Māori, 2.1% Pacific peoples, 5.7% Asian, and 1.7% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity. The percentage of people born overseas was 14.4, compared with 27.1% nationally. Although some people objected to giving their religion, 51.4% had no religion, 35.8% were Christian, 0.8 % were Hindu, 0.3% were Muslim, 0.9% were Buddhist and 2.8% had other religions. Of those at least 15 years old, 3,204 (11.7%) people had a bachelor or higher degree, and 7,203 (26.3%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $32,400, compared with $31,800 nationally. 4,221 people (15.4%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 13,566 (49.5%) people were employed full-time, 4,077 (14.9%) were part-time, and 876 (3.2%) were unemployed. Twin cities. Matamata-Piako is twinned with: