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Background:
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In
1895, military defeat forced China to cede Taiwan to
Japan. Taiwan reverted to Chinese control after
World War II. Following the Communist victory on the
mainland in 1949, 2 million Nationalists fled to
Taiwan and established a government using the 1946
constitution drawn up for all of China. Over the
next five decades, the ruling authorities gradually
democratized and incorporated the native population
within the governing structure. In 2000, Taiwan
underwent its first peaceful transfer of power from
the Nationalist to the Democratic Progressive Party.
Throughout this period, the island prospered and
became one of East Asia's economic
"Tigers." The dominant political issues
continue to be the relationship between Taiwan and
China - specifically the question of eventual
unification - as well as domestic political and
economic reform. |
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Location:
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Eastern
Asia, islands bordering the East China Sea,
Philippine Sea, South China Sea, and Taiwan Strait,
north of the Philippines, off the southeastern coast
of China |
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Geographic coordinates:
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23 30
N, 121 00 E |
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Map references:
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Southeast
Asia |
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Area:
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total:
35,980 sq km
note: includes the Pescadores, Matsu, and
Quemoy
water: 3,720 sq km
land: 32,260 sq km |
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Area - comparative:
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slightly
smaller than Maryland and Delaware combined |
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Land boundaries:
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0 km |
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Coastline:
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1,566.3
km |
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Maritime claims:
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territorial
sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
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Climate:
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tropical;
marine; rainy season during southwest monsoon (June
to August); cloudiness is persistent and extensive
all year |
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Terrain:
|
eastern
two-thirds mostly rugged mountains; flat to gently
rolling plains in west |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest
point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Yu Shan 3,952 m |
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Natural resources:
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small
deposits of coal, natural gas, limestone, marble,
and asbestos |
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Land use:
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arable
land: 24%
permanent crops: 1%
other: 75% (2001) |
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Irrigated land:
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NA sq
km |
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Natural hazards:
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earthquakes
and typhoons |
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Environment - current issues:
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air
pollution; water pollution from industrial
emissions, raw sewage; contamination of drinking
water supplies; trade in endangered species;
low-level radioactive waste disposal |
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Environment - international agreements:
|
party
to: none of the selected agreements because of
Taiwan's international status
signed, but not ratified: none of the
selected agreements because of Taiwan's
international status |
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Geography - note:
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strategic
location adjacent to both the Taiwan Strait and the
Luzon Strait
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Population:
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22,749,838
(July 2004 est.) |
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Age structure:
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0-14
years: 19.9% (male 2,359,467; female 2,167,438)
15-64 years: 70.7% (male 8,149,231; female
7,924,774)
65 years and over: 9.4% (male 1,091,473;
female 1,057,455) (2004 est.) |
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Median age:
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total:
33.7 years
male: 33.3 years
female: 34.1 years (2004 est.) |
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Population growth rate:
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0.64%
(2004 est.) |
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Birth rate:
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12.7
births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
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Death rate:
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6.29
deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
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Net migration rate:
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0
migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
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Sex ratio:
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at
birth: 1.1 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.09 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.03 male(s)/female
total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2004
est.) |
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Infant mortality rate:
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total:
6.52 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 5.77 deaths/1,000 live births (2004
est.)
male: 7.21 deaths/1,000 live births |
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total
population: 77.06 years
male: 74.31 years
female: 80.08 years (2004 est.) |
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Total fertility rate:
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1.57
children born/woman (2004 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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NA |
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
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NA |
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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NA |
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Nationality:
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noun:
Chinese/Taiwanese (singular and plural)
adjective: Chinese/Taiwanese |
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Ethnic groups:
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Taiwanese
(including Hakka) 84%, mainland Chinese 14%,
aborigine 2% |
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Religions:
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mixture
of Buddhist, Confucian, and Taoist 93%, Christian
4.5%, other 2.5% |
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Languages:
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Mandarin
Chinese (official), Taiwanese (Min), Hakka dialects |
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Literacy:
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definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 96.1% (2003)
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Country name:
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conventional
long form: none
conventional short form: Taiwan
local short form: T'ai-wan
local long form: none
former: Formosa |
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Government type:
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multiparty
democratic regime headed by popularly-elected
president and unicameral legislature |
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Capital:
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Taipei |
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Administrative divisions:
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the
central administrative divisions include the
provinces of Fu-chien (some 20 offshore islands of
Fujian Province including Quemoy and Matsu) and
Taiwan (the island of Taiwan and the Pescadores
islands); Taiwan is further subdivided into 16
counties (hsien, singular and plural), 5
municipalities (shih, singular and plural), and 2
special municipalities (chuan-shih, singular and
plural); the provincial capital is at Chung-hsing-hsin-ts'un
: counties: Chang-hua, Chia-i, Hsin-chu, Hua-lien,
I-lan, Kao-hsiung, Miao-li, Nan-t'ou, P'eng-hu,
P'ing-tung, T'ai-chung, T'ai-nan, T'ai-pei,
T'ai-tung, T'ao-yuan, and Yun-lin
: municipalities: Chia-i, Chi-lung, Hsin-chu,
T'ai-chung, T'ai-nan
note: Taiwan uses the Wade-Giles system for
romanization
: special municipalities: Kao-hsiung,
T'ai-pei |
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National holiday:
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Republic
Day (Anniversary of the Chinese Revolution), 10
October (1911) |
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Constitution:
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25
December 1946, amended in 1992, 1994, 1997, 1999,
and 2000 |
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Legal system:
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based
on civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction, with reservations |
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Suffrage:
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20
years of age; universal |
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Executive branch:
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chief
of state: President CHEN Shui-bian (since 20
March 2004) and Vice President Annette LU (LU Hsiu-lien)
(since 20 March 2004)
head of government: Premier (President of the
Executive Yuan) YU Shyi-kun (since 1 February 2002)
and Vice Premier (Vice President of the Executive
Yuan) LIN Hsin-yi (since 1 February 2002)
elections: president and vice president
elected on the same ticket by popular vote for
four-year terms; election last held 20 March 2004
(next to be held in March 2008); premier appointed
by the president; vice premiers appointed by the
president on the recommendation of the premier
election results: CHEN Shui-bian elected
president; percent of vote - CHEN Shui-bian (DPP)
50.1%, LIEN Chan (KMT) 49.9%
cabinet: Executive Yuan appointed by the
president |
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Legislative branch:
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unicameral
Legislative Yuan (225 seats - 168 elected by popular
vote, 41 elected on the basis of the proportion of
islandwide votes received by participating political
parties, eight elected from overseas Chinese
constituencies on the basis of the proportion of
island-wide votes received by participating
political parties, eight elected by popular vote
among the aboriginal populations; members serve
three-year terms) and unicameral National Assembly
(300 seat nonstanding body; delegates nominated by
parties and elected by proportional representation
within three months of a Legislative Yuan call to
amend the Constitution, impeach the president, or
change national borders)
election results: Legislative Yuan - percent
of vote by party - DPP 39%, KMT 30%, PFP 20%, TSU
6%, independents and other parties 5%; seats by
party (2003) - DPP 88, KMT 66, PFP 46, TSU 12,
independents and other parties 13
elections: Legislative Yuan - last held 8
December 2001 (next to be held in December 2004)
note: the number of seats in the legislature
will be reduced from 225 to 113 beginning with the
election in 2007 |
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Judicial branch:
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Judicial
Yuan (justices appointed by the president with
consent of the Legislative Yuan) |
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Political parties and leaders:
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Democratic
Progressive Party or DPP [CHEN Shui-bian, chairman];
Kuomintang or KMT (Nationalist Party) [LIEN Chan,
chairman]; People First Party or PFP [James SOONG (SOONG
Chu-yu), chairman]; Taiwan Solidarity Union or TSU
[HUANG Chu-wen, chairman]; other minor parties
including the Chinese New Party or CNP |
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Political pressure groups and leaders:
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Taiwan
independence movement, various business and
environmental groups
note: debate on Taiwan independence has
become acceptable within the mainstream of domestic
politics on Taiwan; political liberalization and the
increased representation of opposition parties in
Taiwan's legislature have opened public debate on
the island's national identity; a broad popular
consensus has developed that Taiwan currently enjoys
de facto independence and - whatever the ultimate
outcome regarding reunification or independence -
that Taiwan's people must have the deciding voice;
advocates of Taiwan independence oppose the stand
that the island will eventually unify with mainland
China; goals of the Taiwan independence movement
include establishing a sovereign nation on Taiwan
and entering the UN; other organizations supporting
Taiwan independence include the World United
Formosans for Independence and the Organization for
Taiwan Nation Building |
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International organization participation:
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APEC,
AsDB, BCIE, ICC, ICFTU, IOC, WCL, WTrO |
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Diplomatic representation in the US:
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none;
unofficial commercial and cultural relations with
the people of the US are maintained through an
unofficial instrumentality, the Taipei Economic and
Cultural Representative Office (TECRO) in the US
with headquarters in Taipei and field offices in
Washington and 12 other US cities |
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Diplomatic representation from the US:
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none;
unofficial commercial and cultural relations with
the people on Taiwan are maintained through an
unofficial instrumentality - the American Institute
in Taiwan (AIT) - which has offices in the US and
Taiwan; US office located at 1700 N. Moore St.,
Suite 1700, Arlington, VA 22209-1996, telephone: [1]
(703) 525-8474, FAX: [1] (703) 841-1385); Taiwan
offices located at #7 Lane 134, Hsin Yi Road,
Section 3, Taipei, Taiwan, telephone: [886] (2)
2709-2000, FAX: [886] (2) 2702-7675; #2 Chung Cheng
3rd Road, 5th Floor, Kao-hsiung, Taiwan, telephone:
[886] (7) 224-0154 through 0157, FAX: [886] (7)
223-8237; and the American Trade Center, Room 3208
International Trade Building, Taipei World Trade
Center, 333 Keelung Road Section 1, Taipei, Taiwan
10548, telephone: [886] (2) 2720-1550, FAX: [886]
(2) 2757-7162 |
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Flag description:
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red
with a dark blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side
corner bearing a white sun with 12 triangular rays
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Economy - overview:
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Taiwan
has a dynamic capitalist economy with gradually
decreasing guidance of investment and foreign trade
by government authorities. In keeping with this
trend, some large government-owned banks and
industrial firms are being privatized. Exports have
provided the primary impetus for industrialization.
The trade surplus is substantial, and foreign
reserves are the world's third largest. Agriculture
contributes 2% to GDP, down from 32% in 1952. While
Taiwan is a major investor throughout Southeast
Asia, China has become the largest destination for
investment and has overtaken the US to become
Taiwan's largest export market. Because of its
conservative financial approach and its
entrepreneurial strengths, Taiwan suffered little
compared with many of its neighbors from the Asian
financial crisis in 1998. The global economic
downturn, combined with problems in policy
coordination by the administration and bad debts in
the banking system, pushed Taiwan into recession in
2001, the first year of negative growth ever
recorded. Unemployment also reached record levels.
Output recovered moderately in 2002 in the face of
continued global slowdown, fragile consumer
confidence, and bad bank loans. Growing economic
ties with China are a dominant long-term factor.
Exports to China - mainly parts and equipment for
the assembly of goods for export to developed
countries - drove Taiwan's economic recovery in
2002. Although the SARS epidemic, Typhoon Maemi,
corporate scandals, and a drop in consumer spending
caused GDP growth to contract to 3.2% in 2003,
increasingly strong export performance kept Taiwan's
economy on track, and the government expects
Taiwan's economy to grow 4.1% in 2004. |
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GDP:
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purchasing
power parity - $528.6 billion (2003 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate:
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3.2%
(2003 est.) |
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GDP - per capita:
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purchasing
power parity - $23,400 (2003 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture:
1.8%
industry: 30.3%
services: 67.9% (2003) |
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Investment (gross fixed):
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17.5%
of GDP (2003) |
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Population below poverty line:
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1%
(2000 est.) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage
share:
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lowest
10%: 6.7%
highest 10%: 41.1% (2002 est.) |
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Distribution of family income - Gini index:
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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-0.3%
(2003 est.) |
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Labor force:
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10.08
million (2003) |
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Labor force - by occupation:
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agriculture
7.5%, industry 35%, services 57% (2001 est.) |
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Unemployment rate:
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5%
(2003 est.) |
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Budget:
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revenues:
$56.58 billion
expenditures: $69.21 billion, including
capital expenditures of $14.4 billion (2003 est.) |
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Public debt:
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30.5%
of GDP (2003) |
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Agriculture - products:
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rice,
corn, vegetables, fruit, tea; pigs, poultry, beef,
milk, fish |
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Industries:
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electronics,
petroleum refining, chemicals, textiles, iron and
steel, machinery, cement, food processing |
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Industrial production growth rate:
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8.4%
(2003) |
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Electricity - production:
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151.1
billion kWh (2001) |
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Electricity - production by source:
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fossil
fuel: 71.4%
hydro: 6%
other: 0% (2001)
nuclear: 22.6% |
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Electricity - consumption:
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140.5
billion kWh (2001) |
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Electricity - exports:
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0 kWh
(2001) |
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Electricity - imports:
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0 kWh
(2001) |
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Oil - production:
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1,100
bbl/day (2001 est.) |
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Oil - consumption:
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988,000
bbl/day (2001 est.) |
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Oil - exports:
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NA
(2001) |
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Oil - imports:
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NA
(2001) |
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Oil - proved reserves:
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2
million bbl (1 January 2002) |
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Natural gas - production:
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750
million cu m (2001 est.) |
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Natural gas - consumption:
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6.64
billion cu m (2001 est.) |
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Natural gas - exports:
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410
million cu m (2001 est.) |
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Natural gas - imports:
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6.3
billion cu m (2001 est.) |
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Natural gas - proved reserves:
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38.23
billion cu m (1 January 2002) |
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Current account balance:
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$28.57
billion (2003) |
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Exports:
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$143
billion f.o.b. (2003 est.) |
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Exports - commodities:
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computer
products and electrical equipment, metals, textiles,
plastics and rubber products, chemicals (2002) |
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Exports - partners:
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China
25.3%, US 20.5%, Japan 9.2% (2002 est.) |
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Imports:
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$119.6
billion f.o.b. (2003 est.) |
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Imports - commodities:
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machinery
and electrical equipment 44.5%, minerals, precision
instruments (2002) |
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Imports - partners:
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Japan
24.2%, US 16.1%, China 7.1%, South Korea 6.9% (2002
est.) |
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Reserves of foreign exchange & gold:
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$207.1
billion (2003) |
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Debt - external:
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$53.44
billion (2003) |
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Currency:
|
new
Taiwan dollar (TWD) |
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Currency code:
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TWD |
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Exchange rates:
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new
Taiwan dollars per US dollar - 34.418 (2003), 34.575
(2002), 33.8 (2001), 33.09 (2000), 31.6 (1999) |
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Fiscal year:
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1 July
- 30 June (up to FY98/99); 1 July 1999 - 31 December
2000 for FY00; calendar year (after FY00)
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Telephones - main lines in use:
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13.355
million (2003) |
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Telephones - mobile cellular:
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25,089,600
(2003) |
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Telephone system:
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general
assessment: provides telecommunications service
for every business and private need
domestic: thoroughly modern; completely
digitalized
international: country code - 886; satellite
earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Pacific Ocean and 1
Indian Ocean); submarine cables to Japan (Okinawa),
Philippines, Guam, Singapore, Hong Kong, Indonesia,
Australia, Middle East, and Western Europe (1999) |
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Radio broadcast stations:
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AM 218,
FM 333, shortwave 50 (1999) |
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Radios:
|
16
million (1994) |
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Television broadcast stations:
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29
(plus two repeaters) (1997) |
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Televisions:
|
8.8
million (1998) |
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Internet country code:
|
.tw |
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Internet hosts:
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2,777,085
(2003) |
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Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
|
8
(2000) |
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Internet users:
|
8.83
million (2003)
|
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Railways:
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total:
2,544 km
narrow gauge: 1,108 km 1.067-m gauge (519 km
electrified)
note: 1,400 km .762-m gauge (belonging to the
Taiwan Sugar Corporation and to the Taiwan Forestry
Bureau used to haul products and limited numbers of
passengers (2003) |
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Highways:
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total:
35,931 km
paved: 31,583 km (including 608 km of
expressways)
unpaved: 4,348 km (2000) |
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Pipelines:
|
condensate
25 km; gas 435 km (2003) |
|
Ports and harbors:
|
Chi-lung
(Keelung), Hua-lien, Kao-hsiung, Su-ao, T'ai-chung |
|
Merchant marine:
|
total:
130 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 3,417,768
GRT/5,617,318 DWT
by type: bulk 36, cargo 23, chemical tanker
2, combination bulk 3, container 37, petroleum
tanker 17, refrigerated cargo 10, roll on/roll off 2
registered in other countries: 457 (2003
est.)
foreign-owned: Cuba 1, Hong Kong 4 |
|
Airports:
|
40
(2003 est.) |
|
Airports - with paved runways:
|
total:
37
over 3,047 m: 8
2,438 to 3,047 m: 8
914 to 1,523 m: 8
under 914 m: 1 (2003 est.)
1,524 to 2,437 m: 12 |
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Airports - with unpaved runways:
|
total:
3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
under 914 m: 2 (2003 est.) |
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Heliports:
|
3 (2003
est.)
|
|
Military branches:
|
Army,
Navy (including Marine Corps), Air Force, Coast
Guard Administration, Armed Forces Reserve Command,
Combined Service Forces Command, Armed Forces Police
Command |
|
Military manpower - military age:
|
19
years of age; 22-month active service obligation
(2004 est.) |
|
Military manpower - availability:
|
males
age 15-49: 6,556,484 (2004 est.) |
|
Military manpower - fit for military service:
|
males
age 15-49: 4,992,737 (2004 est.) |
|
Military manpower - reaching military age
annually:
|
males:
182,677 (2004 est.) |
|
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
|
$7,611.7
million (2003) |
|
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
|
2.7%
(2003)
|
| Transnational
Issues |
Taiwan |
|
Disputes - international:
|
involved
in complex dispute with China, Malaysia,
Philippines, Vietnam, and possibly Brunei over the
Spratly Islands; the 2002 "Declaration on the
Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea" has
eased tensions but falls short of a legally binding
"code of conduct" desired by several of
the disputants; Paracel Islands are occupied by
China, but claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam; in 2003,
China and Taiwan asserted claims to the
Japanese-administered Senkaku Islands (Diaoyu Tai)
with increased media coverage and protest actions |
|
Illicit drugs:
|
regional
transit point for heroin and methamphetamine; major
problem with domestic consumption of methamphetamine
and heroin; renewal of domestic methamphetamine
production is a problem
|
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