WELLINGTON, May 23 (Xinhua) -- A new domain plan to measure New Zealand's ongoing evolution into a digital nation was released on Thursday in order to collect essential data to track and understand how new and emerging technologies are affecting the country.

"If we are to understand and respond to the impacts of New Zealand's digital transformation, we need good data, and that's what this plan is all about," Government Statistician Liz MacPherson said in a statement.

"Specifically, we need to improve the way information on our digital industries is collected and coordinated," MacPherson said, adding they need to build a better knowledge of the way digital technologies are impacting the social, cultural and economic wellbeing of New Zealanders.

Paul Stocks, deputy chief executive of the Labor, Science and Enterprise under the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE), said the data captured will be used to inform future policy decisions and continued investment in New Zealand's digital economy.

"Our society is becoming increasingly digitized, which leads to many new challenges and opportunities. These will require fresh thinking and innovative solutions from digitally literate and equipped Kiwis, and we must make sure that New Zealand remains digitally advanced," Stocks said.

He said to achieve these goals, the value of the digital technology sector to the economy needs to be better understood. "We cannot do this without accurate measurement approaches."

The digital domain plan, co-developed by Stats NZ and MBIE, sets some strategic priorities for data relating to the digital domain and outlines the following four key areas for action: digital inclusion; defining and valuing the digital sector; digital security; and digital technologies and their impact.