1993 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1993 (Project Gutenberg)
Geography
Area
total area: 35,980 km2 land area: 32,260 km2 comparative area: slightly larger than Maryland and Delaware combined note: includes the Pescadores, Matsu, and Quemoy
Climate
tropical; marine; rainy season during southwest monsoon (June to August); cloudiness is persistent and extensive all year
Coastline
1,448 km
Environment
subject to earthquakes and typhoons
International disputes
involved in complex dispute over the Spratly Islands with China, Malaysia, Philippines, Vietnam, and possibly Brunei; Paracel Islands occupied by China, but claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan; Japanese-administered Senkaku-shoto (Senkaku Islands/Diaoyu Tai) claimed by China and Taiwan
Irrigated land
NA km2
Land boundaries
0 km
Land use
arable land: 24% permanent crops: 1% meadows and pastures: 5% forest and woodland: 55% other: 15%
Location
East Asia, off the southeastern coast of China, between Japan and the Philippines
Map references
Asia, Oceania, Southeast Asia
Maritime claims
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm
Natural resources
small deposits of coal, natural gas, limestone, marble, and asbestos
Terrain
eastern two-thirds mostly rugged mountains; flat to gently rolling plains in west
People and Society
Birth rate
15.88 births/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Death rate
5.54 deaths/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Ethnic divisions
Taiwanese 84%, mainland Chinese 14%, aborigine 2%
Infant mortality rate
5.7 deaths/1,000 live births (1993 est.)
Labor force
7.9 million by occupation: industry and commerce 53%, services 22%, agriculture 15.6%, civil administration 7% (1989)
Languages
Madarin Chinese (official), Taiwanese (Min), Hakka dialects
Life expectancy at birth
total population: 75.04 years male: 71.84 years female: 78.39 years (1993 est.)
Literacy
age 15 and over can read and write (1980) total population: 86% male: 93% female: 79%
Nationality
noun: Chinese (singular and plural) adjective: Chinese
Net migration rate
-0.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Population
21,091,663 (July 1993 est.)
Population growth rate
1% (1993 est.)
Religions
mixture of Buddhist, Confucian, and Taoist 93%, Christian 4.5%, other 2.5%
Total fertility rate
1.81 children born/woman (1993 est.)
Government
Administrative divisions
some of the ruling party in Taipei claim to be the government of all China; in keeping with that claim, the central administrative divisions include 2 provinces (sheng, singular and plural) and 2 municipalities* (shih, singular, and plural) - Fu-chien (some 20 offshore islands of Fujian Province including Quemoy and Matsu), Kao-hsiung*, T'ai-pei*, and Taiwan (the island, of Taiwan and the Pescadores islands); the more commonly referenced administrative divisions are those of Taiwan Province - 16 counties (hsien, singular and plural), 5 municipalities* (shih, singular and plural), and 2, special municipalities** (chuan-shih, singular and plural); Chang-hua,, Chia-i, Chia-i*, Chi-lung*,, Hsin-chu, Hsin-chu*, Hua-lien, I-lan,, Kao-hsiung, Kao-hsiung**, Miao-li, Nan-t'ou, P'eng-hu,, P'ing-tung, T'ai-chung, T'ai-chung*, T'ai-nan, T'ai-nan*, T'ai-pei, T'ai-pei**,, T'ai-tung, T'ao-yuan, and Yun-lin; the provincial capital is at Chung-hsing-hsin-ts'un note: Taiwan uses the Wade-Giles system for romanization
Capital
Taipei
Chief of State
President LI Teng-hui (since 13 January 1988); Vice President LI Yuan-zu (since 20 May 1990)
Constitution
25 December 1947, presently undergoing revision
Digraph
TW
Diplomatic representation in US
none; unofficial commercial and cultural relations with the people of the US are maintained through a private instrumentality, the Coordination Council for North American Affairs (CCNAA) with headquarters in Taipei and field offices in Washington and 10 other US cities
Executive branch
president, vice president, premier of the Executive Yuan, vice premier of the Executive Yuan, Executive Yuan
Flag
red with a dark blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner bearing a white sun with 12 triangular rays
Head of Government
Premier (President of the Executive Yuan) LIEN Chan (since 23 February 1993); Vice Premier (Vice President of the Executive Yuan) HSU Li-teh (since 23 February 1993)
Judicial branch
Judicial Yuan
Legal system
based on civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Legislative branch
unicameral Legislative Yuan and unicameral National Assembly
Legislative Yuan
last held 19 December 1992 (next to be held near the end of 1995); results - KMT 60%, DPP 31%, independents 9%; seats - (304 total, 161 elected) KMT 96, DPP 50, independents 15
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; seeking to join GATT; attempting to retain membership in INTELSAT; suspended from IAEA in 1972, but still allows IAEA controls over extensive atomic development, APEC, AsDB, ICC, ICFTU, IOC
Names
conventional long form: none conventional short form: Taiwan local long form: none local short form: T'ai-wan
National Assembly
first National Assembly elected in November 1946 with a supplementary election in December 1986; second and present National Assembly elected in December 1991; seats - 403 total, KMT 318, DPP 75, other 10; (next election to be held in 1997)
National holiday
National Day, 10 October (1911) (Anniversary of the Revolution)
Other political or pressure groups
Taiwan independence movement, various 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 the opposition Democratic Progressive Party in Taiwan's legislature have opened public debate on the island's national identity; advocates of Taiwan independence, both within the DPP and the ruling Kuomintang, oppose the ruling party's traditional stand that the island will eventually unify with mainland China; the aims 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
Political parties and leaders
Kuomintang (KMT, Nationalist Party), LI Teng-hui, chairman; Democratic Progressive Party (DPP); China Social Democratic Party (CSDP); Labor Party (LP)
President
last held 21 March 1990 (next to be held NA March 1996); results - President LI Teng-hui was reelected by the National Assembly
Suffrage
20 years of age; universal
Type
multiparty democratic regime; opposition political parties legalized in March, 1989
US diplomatic representation
unofficial commercial and cultural relations with the people of Taiwan are maintained through a private institution, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT), which has offices in Taipei at #7, Lane 134, Hsiu Yi Road, Section 3, telephone [886] (2) 709-2000, and in Kao-hsiung at #2 Chung Cheng 3d Road, telephone [886] (7) 224-0154 through 0157, and the American Trade Center at Room 3207 International Trade Building, Taipei World Trade Center, 333 Keelung Road Section 1, Taipei 10548, telephone [886] (2) 720-1550
Vice President
last held 21 March 1990 (next to be held NA March 1996); results - LI Yuan-zu was elected by the National Assembly
Economy
Agriculture
accounts for 4% of GNP and 16% of labor force (includes part-time farmers); heavily subsidized sector; major crops - vegetables, rice, fruit, tea; livestock - hogs, poultry, beef, milk; not self-sufficient in wheat, soybeans, corn; fish catch increasing, reached 1.4 million metric tons in 1988
Budget
revenues $30.3 billion; expenditures $30.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY91 est.)
Currency
1 New Taiwan dollar (NT$) = 100 cents
Economic aid
US, including Ex-Im (FY46-82), $4.6 billion; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $500 million
Electricity
18,382,000 kW capacity; 98,500 million kWh produced, 4,718 kWh per capita (1992)
Exchange rates
New Taiwan dollars per US$1 - 25.125 (1992 est.), 25.748 (1991), 27.108 (1990), 26.407 (1989) 28.589 (1988), 31.845 (1987)
Exports
$82.4 billion (f.o.b., 1992 est.) commodities: electrical machinery 18.5%, textiles 14.7%, general machinery and equipment 17.7%, footwear 4.5%, foodstuffs 1.1%, plywood and wood products 1.1% (1992 est.) partners: US 29.1%, Hong Kong 18.7%, EC countries 17.1% (1992 est.)
External debt
$620 million (1992 est.)
Fiscal year
1 July - 30 June
Illicit drugs
an important heroin transit point; also a major drug money laundering center
Imports
$72.1 billion (c.i.f., 1992 est.) commodities: machinery and equipment 15.8%, chemicals 10.0%, crude oil 4.2%, foodstuffs 2.1% (1992 est.) partners: Japan 30.3%, US 21.9%, EC countries 17.1% (1992 est.)
Industrial production
growth rate 6.5% (1992 est.); accounts for more than 40% of GDP
Industries
electronics, textiles, chemicals, clothing, food processing, plywood, sugar milling, cement, shipbuilding, petroleum refining
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
4.4% (1992 est.)
National product
GNP - purchasing power equivalent - $209 billion (1992 est.)
National product per capita
$10,000 (1992 est.)
National product real growth rate
6.7% (1992 est.)
Overview
Taiwan has a dynamic capitalist economy with considerable government guidance of investment and foreign trade and partial government ownership of some large banks and industrial firms. Real growth in GNP has averaged about 9% a year during the past three decades. Export growth has been even faster and has provided the impetus for industrialization. Agriculture contributes about 4% to GNP, down from 35% in 1952. Taiwan currently ranks as number 13 among major trading countries. Traditional labor-intensive industries are steadily being replaced with more capital- and technology-intensive industries. Taiwan has become a major investor in China, Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Malaysia. The tightening of labor markets has led to an influx of foreign workers, both legal and illegal.
Unemployment rate
1.6% (1992 est.)
Communications
Airports
total: 40 usable: 38 with permanent-surface runways: 36 with runways over 3,659 m: 3 with runways 2,440-3,659 m: 16 with runways 1,220-2,439 m: 7
Highways
20,041 km total; 17,095 km bituminous or concrete pavement, 2,371 km crushed stone or gravel, 575 km graded earth
Merchant marine
223 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 6,761,609 GRT/9,375,677 DWT; includes 1 passenger-cargo, 43 cargo, 11 refrigerated cargo, 85 container, 19 oil tanker, 2 combination ore/oil, 1 specialized tanker, 57 bulk, 1 roll-on/roll-off, 2 combination bulk, 1 chemical tanker
Pipelines
petroleum products 615 km, natural gas 97 km
Ports
Kao-hsiung, Chi-lung (Keelung), Hua-lien, Su-ao, T'ai-tung
Railroads
about 4,600 km total track with 1,075 km common carrier lines and 3,525 km industrial lines; common carrier lines consist of the 1.067-meter gauge 708 km West Line and the 367 km East Line; a 98.25 km South Link Line connection was completed in late 1991; 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
Telecommunications
best developed system in Asia outside of Japan; 7,800,000 telephones; extensive microwave radio relay links on east and west coasts; broadcast stations - 91 AM, 23 FM, 15 TV (13 repeaters); 8,620,000 radios; 6,386,000 TVs (5,680,000 color, 706,000 monochrome); satellite earth stations - 1 Pacific Ocean INTELSAT and 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT; submarine cable links to Japan (Okinawa), the Philippines, Guam, Singapore, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Australia, Middle East, and Western Europe
Military and Security
Branches
General Staff, Ministry of National Defense, Army, Navy (including Marines), Air Force, Coastal Patrol and Defense Command, Armed Forces Reserve Command, Military Police Command
Defense expenditures
exchange rate conversion - $10.9 billion, 5.4% of GNP (FY93/94 est.)
Manpower availability
males age 15-49 6,095,857; fit for military service 4,731,172 (1993 est.); about 184,740 currently reach military age (19) annually