Otago is in the middle of a baby boom, causing a financial headache for the Plunket Society.
Figures supplied by Plunket reveal Otago enrolments in the society's Well Child programmes have increased from 1754 in the 2006 financial year to 1887 last year.
This year, the Otago enrolment figure appears likely to top 1900.
About 1600 babies had been enrolled by April, with three months of data still to be collected.
Otago area operations manager Barb Long said the birth rate was higher than predicted across New Zealand.
Ms Long said the Upper Clutha area, in particular, had contributed to the Otago boom.
The Otago area office had spent its budget before the end of the financial year because more babies had been enrolled than expected.
That forced Plunket to delay some programmes for 2-year-olds and negotiate with funders for money to cover the gaps.
"Plunket has been working really intensely and well with the Ministry of Health, and there's a movement towards more funding for next year," Ms Long said.
That should allow more resources to be directed to the Upper Clutha, and more 2-year-olds should be seen by a Plunket nurse, she said.
Ms Long has enrolled 286 babies from Central Otago so far this year, 37 more than in the corresponding period last year.
Almost 50% of the enrolments (126) are from the Upper Clutha.
She has enrolled 219 babies from the Wakatipu area (data from this region is included in the Southland area), 13 fewer than for the corresponding period last year.
The reason for the drop in enrolments on the Wakatipu side of the Crown Range was unclear, but Ms Long said a more transient workforce might have contributed.
On the Wanaka side of the hill, enrolments rose from 94 in the year ending June 2006 to 126 in the nine months to April.
The Wanaka numbers are expected to go higher, as more are enrolled by the end of this month.
