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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
land: 32,260 sq km
water: 3,720 sq km
note: includes the Pescadores, Matsu, and Quemoy
|
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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:
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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:
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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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22,894,384 (July 2005 est.) |
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Age structure:
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0-14
years: 19.7% (male 2,349,077/female 2,156,755)
15-64 years: 70.7% (male 8,205,933/female
7,980,056)
65 years and over: 9.6% (male 1,107,708/female
1,094,855) (2005 est.) |
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Median age:
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total:
34.14 years
male: 33.71 years
female: 34.57 years (2005 est.) |
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Population growth rate:
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0.63%
(2005 est.) |
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Birth rate:
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12.64
births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
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Death rate:
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6.38
deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
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Net migration rate:
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0
migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 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: 1.01 male(s)/female
total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
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Infant mortality rate:
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total:
6.4 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 7.09 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 5.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total
population: 77.26 years
male: 74.49 years
female: 80.28 years (2005 est.) |
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Total fertility rate:
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1.57
children born/woman (2005 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:
Taiwan (singular and plural)
note: example: he or she is from Taiwan; they are
from Taiwan
adjective: Taiwan |
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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 long form: none
local short form: T'ai-wan
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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includes central island of Taiwan plus numerous smaller
islands near central island and off coast of China's
Fujian Province; Taiwan is divided into 18 counties (hsien,
singular and plural), 5 municipalities (shih, singular
and plural), and 2 special municipalities (chuan-shih,
singular and plural)
: counties: Chang-hua, Chia-i, Hsin-chu, Hua-lien,
I-lan, Kao-hsiung county, Kin-men, Lien-chiang, Miao-li,
Nan-t'ou, P'eng-hu, P'ing-tung, T'ai-chung, T'ai-nan,
T'ai-pei county, T'ai-tung, T'ao-yuan, and Yun-lin
: municipalities: Chia-i, Chi-lung, Hsin-chu,
T'ai-chung, T'ai-nan
: special municipalities: Kao-hsiung city,
T'ai-pei city
note: Taiwan generally uses Wade-Giles system for
romanization; special municipality of Taipei adopted
standard pinyin romanization for street and place names
within city boundaries, other local authorities have
selected a variety of romanization systems |
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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 May 2000) and Vice President Annette LU (LU Hsiu-lien)
(since 20 May 2000)
head of government: Premier (President of the
Executive Yuan) Frank HSIEH (since 1 February 2005) and
Vice Premier (Vice President of the Executive Yuan) - WU
Rong-i) (since 18 February 2005)
cabinet: Executive Yuan appointed by the
president
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 re-elected
president; percent of vote - CHEN Shui-bian (DPP) 50.1%,
LIEN Chan (KMT) 49.9% |
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Legislative branch:
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unicameral Legislative Yuan (225 seats - 168 elected by
popular vote, 41 elected on basis of proportion of
islandwide votes received by participating political
parties, 8 elected from overseas Chinese constituencies
on basis of proportion of island-wide votes received by
participating political parties, 8 elected by popular
vote among aboriginal populations; members serve
three-year terms) and unicameral National Assembly (300
seat nonstanding body; delegates nominated by parties
and elected by proportional representation six to nine
months after Legislative Yuan calls to amend
Constitution, impeach president, or change national
borders)
note: as a result of constitutional amendments
approved by the National Assembly on 7 June 2005, the
number of seats in the legislature will be reduced from
225 to 113 beginning with the election in 2007; the
amendments also eliminate the National Assembly, thus
giving Taiwan a unicameral legislature
elections: Legislative Yuan - last held 11
December 2004 (next to be held in December 2007);
National Assembly - last held 14 May 2005
election results: Legislative Yuan - percent of
vote by party - DPP 38%, KMT 35%, PFP 15%, TSU 8%, other
parties and independents 4%; seats by party - DPP 89,
KMT 79, PFP 34, TSU 12, other parties 7, independents 4;
National Assembly - percent of vote by party - DPP
42.5%, KMT 38.9%, TSU 7%, PFP 6%, others 6.6%; seats by
party - DPP 127, KMT 117, TSU 21, PFP 18, others 17
(2005) |
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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 [Annette LU, acting
chairwoman]; Kuomintang or KMT (Nationalist Party) [MA
Ying-jeou, chairman]; People First Party or PFP [James
SOONG (SOONG Chu-yu), chairman]; Taiwan Solidarity Union
or TSU [SU Chin-chiang, 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, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IFRCS, IOC, WCL, WTO |
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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 at 1700 N. Moore St., Suite 1700, Arlington,
VA 22209-1996, telephone: [1] (703) 525-8474, FAX: [1]
(703) 841-1385); Taiwan offices at #7 Lane 134, Hsin Yi
Road, Section 3, Taipei, Taiwan, telephone: [886] (2)
2162-2000, FAX: [886] (2) 2162-2251; #2 Chung Cheng 3rd
Road, 5th Floor, Kao-hsiung, Taiwan, telephone: [886]
(7) 238-7744, FAX: [886] (7) 238-5237; 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 less than 2% to GDP,
down from 32% in 1952. Taiwan is a major investor
throughout Southeast Asia. China 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. The essentially vibrant economy pushed ahead
in 2003-05. Growing economic ties with China are a
dominant long-term factor, e.g., exports to China of
parts and equipment for the assembly of goods for export
to developed countries. |
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GDP (purchasing power parity):
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$610.8 billion (2005 est.) |
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GDP (official exchange rate):
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$334.4 billion (2005 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate:
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3.6% (2005 est.) |
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GDP - per capita:
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purchasing power parity - $26,700 (2005 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture: 1.6%
industry: 29.3%
services: 69% (2005 est.) |
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Labor force:
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10.31 million (2005 est.) |
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Labor force - by occupation:
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agriculture 6%, industry 35.8%, services 58.2% (2005
est.) |
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Unemployment rate:
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4.2% (2005 est.) |
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Population below poverty line:
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0.9% (2005) |
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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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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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1.8% (2005 est.) |
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Investment (gross fixed):
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20.8% of GDP (2005 est.) |
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Budget:
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revenues: $70.93 billion
expenditures: $80.14 billion, including capital
expenditures of $14.4 billion (2005 est.) |
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Public debt:
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33.3% of GDP (2005 est.) |
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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, armaments, chemicals,
textiles, iron and steel, machinery, cement, food
processing, vehicles, consumer products, pharmaceuticals
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Industrial production growth rate:
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3% (2005 est.) |
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Electricity - production:
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218.3 billion kWh (2004) |
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Electricity - consumption:
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206.1 billion kWh (2004) |
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Electricity - exports:
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0 kWh (2004) |
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Electricity - imports:
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0 kWh (2004) |
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Oil - production:
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8,354 bbl/day (2003 est.) |
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Oil - consumption:
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915,000 bbl/day (2003 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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2.9 million bbl (2005 est.) |
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Natural gas - production:
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962.8 million cu m (2005 est.) |
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Natural gas - consumption:
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8.32 billion cu m (2005 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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7.48 billion cu m (2005 est.) |
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Natural gas - proved reserves:
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38.23 billion cu m (2005) |
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Current account balance:
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$15.03 billion (2005 est.) |
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Exports:
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$185.1 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.) |
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Exports - partners:
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China, including Hong Kong 37%, US 15.3%, Japan 7.7%
(2005) |
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Imports:
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$172.9 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.) |
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Imports - partners:
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Japan 26%, US 12%, China, including Hong Kong 12%, South
Korea 7% (2005) |
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Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
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$269.7 billion (2005 est.) |
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Debt - external:
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$81.64 billion (2005 est.) |
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Currency (code):
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new Taiwan dollar (TWD) |
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Exchange rates:
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new Taiwan dollars per US dollar - 31.71 (2005), 33.422
(2004), 34.418 (2003), 34.575 (2002), 33.8 (2001) |
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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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Television broadcast stations:
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29 (plus
two repeaters) (1997) |
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Internet country code:
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.tw |
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Internet hosts:
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2,777,085
(2003) |
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Internet users:
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13.8
million (2005) |
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Airports:
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40 (2004
est.) |
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Airports - with paved runways:
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total:
38
over 3,047 m: 8
2,438 to 3,047 m: 8
1,524 to 2,437 m: 12
914 to 1,523 m: 8
under 914 m: 2 (2005 est.) |
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Airports - with unpaved runways:
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total:
4
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
under 914 m: 3 (2005 est.) |
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Heliports:
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3 (2005
est.) |
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Pipelines:
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condensate 25 km; gas 435 km (2004) |
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Railways:
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total:
2,497 km
narrow gauge: 1,097 km 1.067-m gauge (685 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 (2004) |
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Roadways:
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total:
37,299 km
paved: 35,621 km (including 608 km of
expressways)
unpaved: 1,678 km (2002) |
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Merchant marine:
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total:
126 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 3,417,768 GRT/5,617,318
DWT
by type: bulk carrier 36, cargo 23, chemical
tanker 2, container 37, passenger/cargo 3, petroleum
tanker 15, refrigerated cargo 9, roll on/roll off 1
foreign-owned: 3 (Hong Kong 3)
registered in other countries: 432 (2005) |
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Ports and terminals:
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Chi-lung
(Keelung), Hua-lien, Kao-hsiung, Su-ao, T'ai-chung |
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Military branches:
|
Army, Navy (includes Marine Corps), Air Force, Coast
Guard Administration, Armed Forces Reserve Command,
Combined Service Forces Command, Armed Forces Police
Command |
|
Military service age and obligation:
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19-35 years of age for military service; service
obligation 16 months (to be shortened to 12 months in
2008); women in Air Force service are restricted to
noncombat roles (2005) |
|
Manpower available for military service:
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males age 19-49: 5,883,828 (2005 est.) |
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Manpower fit for military service:
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males age 19-49: 4,749,537 (2005 est.) |
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Manpower reaching military service age annually:
|
males: 174,173 (2005 est.) |
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Military expenditures - dollar figure:
|
$7.574 billion (2003) |
|
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
|
2.6% (2004) |
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Disputes - international:
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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 became more vocal in rejecting both Japan's
claims to the uninhabited islands of the Senkaku-shoto (Diaoyu
Tai) and Japan's unilaterally declared exclusive
economic zone in the East China Sea where all parties
engage in hydrocarbon prospecting |
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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 |
This page was last updated on 10
January, 2006
|
