1986 Edition

Agriculture

most arable land intensely farmed — 60% cultivated land under irrigation; main crops — rice, sweet potatoes, sugarcane, bananas, pineapples, citrus fruits; food shortages — wheat, corn, soybeans

olives, citrus, and other fruits, vegetables, beef, and dairy products

Aid

economic commitments — US authorizations, including Ex-Im (FY46-82), $4.6 billion; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF (1970-83), $402 million; military— US (FY46-81), $4.4 billion authorized

Airfields

41 total; 38 usable; 34 with permanent-surface runways; 3 with runways over 3,659 m, 17 with runways 2,440-3,659 m, 7 with runways 1,2202,439 m West Bank and Gaza Strip

Gaza Strip has 1 usable with permanent-surface runway; airfield in occupied territory north of East Jerusalem

Branches

five independent branches (executive, legislative, judicial, plus traditional Chinese functions of examination and control), dominated by executive branch; President and Vice President elected by National Assembly

Army, Navy (including Marines), Air Force, Combined Services Force

Budget

central government expenditure, $42.5 billion (FY83)

within the occupied territories, each municipality has its own budget; the following data represent the sum of the revenues and expenditures of the municipalities in each area for fiscal year beginning 1 April

Capital

Taipei

CNP

West Bank— $1.1 billion (1983); Gaza Strip— $550 million (1983)

Coastline

West Bank — none; Gaza Strip — 39.7 km People

Elections

national level — Legislative Yuan every three years; National Assembly and Control Yuan every six years; no general election held since 1948 election on mainland (partial elections for Taiwan province representatives in December 1969, 1972, 1975, 1980, 1983, 1984, and 1985); local level — provincial assembly, county and municipal executives every four years; county and municipal assemblies every four years Political parties and leaders: Kuomintang, or National Party, led by Chairman Chiang Ching-kuo

Electric power

16,067,000 kW capacity (1985); 53 billion kWh produced (1985), 2,738 kWh per capita

the Israel Electric Corporation, Ltd., exported 285 million kWh during 1985 (exported is understood to mean power provided to occupied territories)

Ethnic divisions

West Bank— 88% Palestinian Arab and other, 12% Jewish (includimg expanded East Jerusalem); Gaza Strip — 99.8% Palestinian Arab and other, 0.2% Jewish

Exports

$30.4 billion (f.o.b., 1984 est.); 20.5% textiles, 18.8% electrical machinery, 9% general machinery and equipment, 9% telecommunications equipment, 7.4% basic metals and metal products, 5.4% foodstuffs, 2.5% plywood and wood products

West Bank— $184.5 million (1984); Gaza Strip— $114.9 million (1984)

Fiscal year

1 July-30 June Communications

Fishing

catch 930,582 metric tons (1983)

Gaza Strip

Arabic; Israeli settlers speak Hebrew; English widely understood

(excluding Israeli Jewish settlers) 32.0% small industry, commerce and business; 24.4% construction; 25.5% service and other; and 18.1% agriculture (1984) West Bank and Gaza Strip (continued) Government The West Bank and the Gaza Strip are currently governed by Israeli military authorities and their civil administrations. It is US policy that the final status of these areas will be determined by negotiations among the concerned parties. These negotiations will determine how this area is to be governed. Economy

no known installed capacity; power probably obtained from Israel

revenues, $14.2 million; expenditures, $18.2 million

units of currency used are Israeli shekel (293.2=US$1, 1984 average), Egyptian pound (1.43=US$1, February 1984 average), and US dollar Communications

small, poorly developed indigenous road network; Israelis have improved major axial highways

GNP

$56.6 billion (1984 est), $2,980 per capita; 4.6% real growth (1985)

Government leaders

CHIANG Ching-kuo, President (since March 1978); YU Kuo-hua, Premier (since June 1984)

Highways

network totals 18,800 km (15,800 km are bituminous or concrete surface); 2,500 km are crushed stone or gravel surface; and 500 km are graded earth

West Bank: small, poorly developed indigenous road network; Israelis have improved major axial highways

Imports

$21.6 billion (c.i.f., 1984 est.); 25% machinery and equipment, 17.7% crude oil, 1 1.9% chemical and chemical products, 6.7% basic metals, 6.3% foodstuffs

West Bank— $406.8 million (1984); Gaza Strip— $279.4 million (1984)

Labor force

7,491,000(1984); 41% industry and commerce, 32% services, 20% agriculture, 7% civil administration; 2.4% unemployment (1984)

West Bank: (excluding Israeli Jewish settlers) 29.8% small industry, commerce, and business; 24.2% construction; 22.4% agriculture; and 23.6% service and other (1984)

Land boundaries

West Bank— 480.2 km; Gaza Strip— 72. 1 km Water

Language

West Bank: Arabic; Israeli settlers speak Hebrew; English widely understood

Legal system

based on civil law system; constitution adopted 1946, though 1948 amendments set most of the constitution aside; martial law declared in 1949 still in effect; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

Major industries

textiles, clothing, chemicals, electronics, food processing, plywood, sugar milling, cement, shipbuilding

the Israelis have established some small-scale modern industries in the settlements and industrial centers (3 in West Bank and 1 in Gaza Strip); generally small family businesses that produce cement, textiles, soap, olive wood carvings, and mother-of-pearl souvenirs

Major trade partners

exports — 49% US, 10% Japan; imports— 29% Japan, 23% US, 8.6% Saudi Arabia (1983)

West Bank — Jordan and Israel; Gaza Strip — Egypt and Israel

Member of

expelled from UN General Assembly and Security Council on 25 October 1971 and withdrew on same date from other charter-designated subsidiary organs; expelled from IMF/World Bank group April/May 1980; member of ADB and seeking to join GATT and/or MFA; attempting to retain membership in ICAC, ISO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IWC— International Wheat Council, PCA; suspended from IAEA in 1972 but still allows IAEA controls over extensive atomic development Economy

Military budget

announced expenditures for national defense for fiscal year ending 30 June 1986, $4.0 billion; about 39.1% of central government budget; however, total military expenditures may be closer to $4.7 billion or about 50% of the central government budget reptesentalion i! Mediterranean Sea STRIP [(Israeli occupiedstatus to be determined) See region..! map VI

Military manpower

males 15-49, 5,301,000; 4,167,000 fit for military service; about 215,000 currently reach military age (19) annually

Monetary conversion rate

NT (New Taiwan) 40.39 dollars=US$l (September 1985)

West Bank: units of currency used are Israeli shekel (293.2=US$1, 1984 average), Jordanian dinar (0.384=US$1, 1984 average), and US dollar

National holiday

10 October

Nationality

West Bank — to be determined; Gaza Strip — to be determined

Natural resources

small deposits of coal, natural gas, limestone, marble, and asbestos

NOTE

the war between Israel and the Arab states in June 1967 ended with Israel in control of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, the Sinai, and the Golan Heights. As stated in the 1978 Camp David Accords and reaffirmed by the President's 1 September 1982 peace initiative, the final status of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, their relationship with their neighbors, and a peace treaty between Israel and Jordan are to be negotiated among the concerned parties. Camp David further specifies that these negotiations will resolve the respective boundaries. Pending the completion of this process, it is US policy that the final status of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip has yet to be determined. In the view of the United States, the term "West Bank" describes all of the area west of the Jordan River under Jordanian administration before the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. However, with respect to negotiations evisaged in the framework agreement, it is US policy that a distinction must be made between Jerusalem and the rest of the West Bank because of the city's special status and circumstances. Therefore, a negotiated solution for the final status of Jerusalem could be different in character from that of the rest of the West Bank. Land West Bank— 5,858. 1 km2 (includes West Bank, East Jerusalem, Latrun Salient and "Jerusalem No Man's Land," and the northwest quarter of L!ie Dead Sea; excludes Mt. Scopus); less than one-half the size of North Carolina; Gaza Strip— 363.3 km2; slightly larger than Washington, D. C.

Organized labor

(1983) 1.3 million or about 18.4% (government controlled) Administration

Other political or pressure groups

loose coalition of oppositionist/independent politicians has emerged in the past six years plus Young China Party, nominally controlled by the KMT

Pipelines

615 km refined products, 97 km natural gas

Political subdivisions

16 counties, 5 cities, 2 special municipalities (Taipei and Kao-hsiung)

Population

total, 1,508,000 (July 1986); average annual growth rate 3.3%; West Bank (including East Jerusalem)— 967,000 (July 1986), average annual growth rate 3.1%; Gaza Strip— 54 1,000 (July 1986), average annual growth rate 3.7%

Ports

5 major (Kao-hsiung, Chi-lung, Hualien, Su-ao, and T'ai-tung), 4 minor (Tanshui, T'ai-nan, Ta-p'eng, and Ma-kung)

facilities for small boats at Gaza

Railroads

about 1,075 km common carrier lines and over 3,800 km industrial lines; common carrier lines consist of the 1.067meter gauge 708 km West Line and the 367 km East Line; a 98.25 km South Link Line connection is under construction; common carrier lines owned by the government and operated by the Railway Administration under Ministry of Communications; industrial lines owned and operated by government enterprises

West Bank — none; Gaza Strip — one abandoned line throughout the entire territory

Religion

West Bank— 80% Muslim (predominantly Sunni), 12% Jewish, 7% Christian and other; Gaza Strip — 99% Muslim (predominantly Sunni), 0.8% Christian, 0.2% Jewish

Suffrage

universal over age 20

Telecommunications

very good international and domestic service; 5.1 million telephones(l per 3.5 popl.); about 100 radio broadcast stations with 270 AM and 12 FM transmitters; 12 TV stations and 6 repeaters; 8 million radio receivers and 3.6 million TV receivers; 2 INTELSAT ground stations; tropospheric scatter links to Hong Kong and the Philippines available but inactive; submarine cables to Okinawa (Japan), the Philippines, Guam, Singapore, and Hong Kong Defense Forces

West Bank — planned telephone system currently being upgraded; no local radio or TV stations; Gaza Strip — no local radio or TV stations

West Bank — planned telephone system currently being upgraded; no local radio or TV stations; Gaza Strip — no local radio or TV stations

Type

one-party presidential regime

Voting strength

(1983 Legislative Yuan elections) 62 seats Kuomintang, 19 seats independents; 1981 local elections, with 63% turnout of eligible voters, Kuomintang received 71% of the popular vote, non-Kuomintang 29%

West Bank

bulk of installed capacity contained in two diesel power plants — Jerusalem-Shoufat plant (22,000 kW) , which is owned and operated by the East Jerusalem Electric Co., and Nablus plant (19,600 kW), which is owned and operated by the Nablus municipality; total estimated capacity for all West Bank power plants is 45,000 kW (1985); 59 million kWh produced (1985), 63 kWh per capita

revenues, $26.7 million; expenditures, $27.1 million