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Compare Canada (2005) - China (2002)

Compare Canada (2005) z China (2002)

 Canada (2005)China (2002)
 CanadaChina
Administrative divisions 10 provinces and 3 territories*; Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Northwest Territories*, Nova Scotia, Nunavut*, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Yukon Territory* 23 provinces (sheng, singular and plural), 5 autonomous regions* (zizhiqu, singular and plural), and 4 municipalities** (shi, singular and plural); Anhui, Beijing**, Chongqing**, Fujian, Gansu, Guangdong, Guangxi*, Guizhou, Hainan, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Jilin, Liaoning, Nei Mongol*, Ningxia*, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanghai**, Shanxi, Sichuan, Tianjin**, Xinjiang*, Xizang* (Tibet), Yunnan, Zhejiang; note - China considers Taiwan its 23rd province; see separate entries for the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau
Age structure 0-14 years: 17.9% (male 3,016,032/female 2,869,244)


15-64 years: 68.9% (male 11,357,425/female 11,244,356)


65 years and over: 13.2% (male 1,842,496/female 2,475,488) (2005 est.)
0-14 years: 24.3% (male 163,821,081; female 148,855,387)


15-64 years: 68.4% (male 452,354,428; female 426,055,713)


65 years and over: 7.3% (male 43,834,528; female 49,382,568) (2002 est.)
Agriculture - products wheat, barley, oilseed, tobacco, fruits, vegetables; dairy products; forest products; fish rice, wheat, potatoes, sorghum, peanuts, tea, millet, barley, cotton, oilseed; pork; fish
Airports 1,326 (2004 est.) 489 (2001)
Airports - with paved runways total: 503


over 3,047 m: 18


2,438 to 3,047 m: 15


1,524 to 2,437 m: 150


914 to 1,523 m: 245


under 914 m: 75 (2004 est.)
total: 324


over 3,047 m: 27


2,438 to 3,047 m: 88


1,524 to 2,437 m: 147


914 to 1,523 m: 30


under 914 m: 32 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 823


1,524 to 2,437 m: 67


914 to 1,523 m: 347


under 914 m: 409 (2004 est.)
total: 165


over 3,047 m: 1


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 29


914 to 1,523 m: 56


under 914 m: 78 (2002)
Area total: 9,984,670 sq km


land: 9,093,507 sq km


water: 891,163 sq km
total: 9,596,960 sq km


land: 9,326,410 sq km


water: 270,550 sq km
Area - comparative somewhat larger than the US slightly smaller than the US
Background A land of vast distances and rich natural resources, Canada became a self-governing dominion in 1867 while retaining ties to the British crown. Economically and technologically the nation has developed in parallel with the US, its neighbor to the south across an unfortified border. Canada's paramount political problem is meeting public demands for quality improvements in health care and education services after a decade of budget cuts. The issue of reconciling Quebec's francophone heritage with the majority anglophone Canadian population has moved to the back burner in recent years; support for separatism abated after the Quebec government's referendum on independence failed to pass in October of 1995. For centuries China stood as a leading civilization, outpacing the rest of the world in the arts and sciences. But in the 19th and early 20th centuries, China was beset by civil unrest, major famines, military defeats, and foreign occupation. After World War II, the Communists under MAO Zedong established a dictatorship that, while ensuring China's sovereignty, imposed strict controls over everyday life and cost the lives of tens of millions of people. After 1978, his successor DENG Xiaoping gradually introduced market-oriented reforms and decentralized economic decision making, and output quadrupled by 2000. Political controls remain tight even while economic controls continue to be relaxed.
Birth rate 10.84 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) 15.85 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Budget revenues: $151 billion


expenditures: $144 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)
revenues: $161.8 billion


expenditures: $191.8 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000)
Capital Ottawa Beijing
Climate varies from temperate in south to subarctic and arctic in north extremely diverse; tropical in south to subarctic in north
Coastline 202,080 km 14,500 km
Constitution made up of unwritten and written acts, customs, judicial decisions, and traditions; the written part of the constitution consists of the Constitution Act of 29 March 1867, which created a federation of four provinces, and the Constitution Act of 17 April 1982, which transferred formal control over the constitution from Britain to Canada, and added a Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms as well as procedures for constitutional amendments most recent promulgation 4 December 1982
Country name conventional long form: none


conventional short form: Canada
conventional long form: People's Republic of China


conventional short form: China


local long form: Zhonghua Renmin Gongheguo


local short form: Zhong Guo


abbreviation: PRC
Currency - yuan (CNY)
Death rate 7.73 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) 6.77 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Debt - external $570 billion (2004) $149.4 billion (2002 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission: Ambassador David H. WILKINS


embassy: 490 Sussex Drive, Ottawa, Ontario K1N 1G8


mailing address: P. O. Box 5000, Ogdensburgh, NY 13669-0430


telephone: [1] (613) 238-5335, 4470


FAX: [1] (613) 688-3082


consulate(s) general: Calgary, Halifax, Montreal, Quebec, Toronto, Vancouver, Winnipeg
chief of mission: Ambassador Clark T. RANDT, Jr.


embassy: Xiu Shui Bei Jie 3, 100600 Beijing


mailing address: PSC 461, Box 50, FPO AP 96521-0002


telephone: [86] (10) 6532-3431


FAX: [86] (10) 6532-6929


consulate(s) general: Chengdu, Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Shenyang
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission: Ambassador Francis Joseph MCKENNA


chancery: 501 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20001


telephone: [1] (202) 682-1740


FAX: [1] (202) 682-7726


consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Buffalo, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, New York, Phoenix, San Diego, and Seattle


consulate(s): Anchorage, Houston, Philadelphia, Princeton, Raleigh, San Francisco, and San Jose
chief of mission: Ambassador YANG Jiechi


chancery: 2300 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 328-2500


FAX: [1] (202) 328-2582


consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco
Disputes - international managed maritime boundary disputes with the US at Dixon Entrance, Beaufort Sea, Strait of Juan de Fuca, and around the disputed Machias Seal Island and North Rock; working toward greater cooperation with US in monitoring people and commodities crossing the border; uncontested sovereignty dispute with Denmark over Hans Island in the Kennedy Channel between Ellesmere Island and Greenland in 2000, China joined ASEAN discussions towards creating a South China Sea "code of conduct" - a non-legally binding, confidence-building measure; much of the rugged, militarized boundary with India is in dispute, but talks to resolve the least contested middle sector resumed in 2001; ongoing talks with Tajikistan have failed to resolve the longstanding dispute over the indefinite boundary; Kazakhstan is working rapidly with China to delimit its large open borders to control population migration, illegal activities, and trade; 2001 Treaty of Good Neighborliness, Friendship, and Cooperation commits Russia and China to seek peaceable unanimity over disputed alluvial islands at the confluence of the Amur and Ussuri rivers and a small island on the Argun; involved in a complex dispute over the Spratly Islands with Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, and possibly Brunei; maritime boundary agreement with Vietnam in the Gulf of Tonkin awaits ratification; Paracel Islands occupied by China, but claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan; claims Japanese-administered Senkaku-shoto (Senkaku Islands/Diaoyu Tai), as does Taiwan; demarcation of the land boundary with Vietnam has commenced, but details of the alignment have not been made public; 33-km section of boundary with North Korea in the Paektu-san (mountain) area is indefinite
Economic aid - donor ODA, $2 billion (2004) -
Economic aid - recipient - $NA
Economy - overview As an affluent, high-tech industrial society, newly entered in the trillion dollar class, Canada closely resembles the US in its market-oriented economic system, pattern of production, and affluent living standards. Since World War II, the impressive growth of the manufacturing, mining, and service sectors has transformed the nation from a largely rural economy into one primarily industrial and urban. The 1989 US-Canada Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) (which includes Mexico) touched off a dramatic increase in trade and economic integration with the US. Given its great natural resources, skilled labor force, and modern capital plant Canada enjoys solid economic prospects. Solid fiscal management has produced a long-term budget surplus which is substantially reducing the national debt, although public debate continues over how to manage the rising cost of the publicly funded healthcare system. Exports account for roughly a third of GDP. Canada enjoys a substantial trade surplus with its principal trading partner, the United States, which absorbs more than 85% of Canadian exports. In late 1978 the Chinese leadership began moving the economy from a sluggish Soviet-style centrally planned economy to a more market-oriented system. Whereas the system operates within a political framework of strict Communist control, the economic influence of non-state organizations and individual citizens has been steadily increasing. The authorities have switched to a system of household and village responsibility in agriculture in place of the old collectivization, increased the authority of local officials and plant managers in industry, permitted a wide variety of small-scale enterprise in services and light manufacturing, and opened the economy to increased foreign trade and investment. The result has been a quadrupling of GDP since 1978. In 2002, with its 1.28 billion people but a GDP of just $4,600 per capita, China stood as the second largest economy in the world after the US (measured on a purchasing power parity basis). Agriculture and industry have posted major gains, especially in coastal areas near Hong Kong and opposite Taiwan, where foreign investment has helped spur output of both domestic and export goods. On the darker side, the leadership has often experienced in its hybrid system the worst results of socialism (bureaucracy and lassitude) and of capitalism (windfall gains and growing income disparities). Beijing thus has periodically backtracked, retightening central controls at intervals. The government has struggled to (a) collect revenues due from provinces, businesses, and individuals; (b) reduce corruption and other economic crimes; and (c) keep afloat the large state-owned enterprises many of which had been shielded from competition by subsidies and had been losing the ability to pay full wages and pensions. From 80 to 120 million surplus rural workers are adrift between the villages and the cities, many subsisting through part-time low-paying jobs. Popular resistance, changes in central policy, and loss of authority by rural cadres have weakened China's population control program, which is essential to maintaining long-term growth in living standards. Another long-term threat to growth is the deterioration in the environment, notably air pollution, soil erosion, and the steady fall of the water table especially in the north. China continues to lose arable land because of erosion and economic development. Beijing will intensify efforts to stimulate growth through spending on infrastructure - such as water control and power grids - and poverty relief and through rural tax reform aimed at eliminating arbitrary local levies on farmers. Access to the World Trade Organization strengthens China's ability to maintain sturdy growth rates, and at the same time puts additional pressure on the hybrid system of strong political controls and growing market influences. Although Beijing has claimed 7%-8% annual growth in recent years, many observers believe the rate, while strong, is more like 5%.
Electricity - consumption 487.3 billion kWh (2002) 1.206 trillion kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports 36.13 billion kWh (2002) 10.25 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports 13 billion kWh (2002) 400 million kWh (2000)
Electricity - production 548.9 billion kWh (2002) 1.308 trillion kWh (2000)
Electricity - production by source - fossil fuel: 82%


hydro: 17%


nuclear: 1%


other: 0% (2000)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m


highest point: Mount Logan 5,959 m
lowest point: Turpan Pendi -154 m


highest point: Mount Everest 8,850 m (1999 est.)
Environment - current issues air pollution and resulting acid rain severely affecting lakes and damaging forests; metal smelting, coal-burning utilities, and vehicle emissions impacting on agricultural and forest productivity; ocean waters becoming contaminated due to agricultural, industrial, mining, and forestry activities air pollution (greenhouse gases, sulfur dioxide particulates) from reliance on coal, produces acid rain; water shortages, particularly in the north; water pollution from untreated wastes; deforestation; estimated loss of one-fifth of agricultural land since 1949 to soil erosion and economic development; desertification; trade in endangered species
Environment - international agreements party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Marine Life Conservation
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling


signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
Ethnic groups British Isles origin 28%, French origin 23%, other European 15%, Amerindian 2%, other, mostly Asian, African, Arab 6%, mixed background 26% Han Chinese 91.9%, Zhuang, Uygur, Hui, Yi, Tibetan, Miao, Manchu, Mongol, Buyi, Korean, and other nationalities 8.1%
Exchange rates Canadian dollars per US dollar - 1.301 (2004), 1.4011 (2003), 1.5693 (2002), 1.5488 (2001), 1.4851 (2000) yuan per US dollar - 8.2767 (January 2002), 8.2771 (2001), 8.2785 (2000), 8.2783 (1999), 8.2790 (1998), 8.2898 (1997)
Executive branch chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Michaelle Jean (since 27 October 2005)


head of government: Prime Minister Paul MARTIN (since 12 December 2003); Deputy Prime Minister Anne MCLELLAN (since 12 December 2003)


cabinet: Federal Ministry chosen by the prime minister from among the members of his own party sitting in Parliament


elections: none; the monarchy is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister for a five-year term; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition in the House of Commons is automatically designated prime minister by the governor general
chief of state: President Hu Jintao (since 15 March 2003) and Vice President ZENG Qinghong (since 15 March 2003)


head of government: Premier WEN Jiabao (since 16 March 2003); Vice Premiers QIAN Qichen (since 29 March 1993), LI Lanqing (29 March 1993), WU Bangguo (since 17 March 1995), and WEN Jiabao (since 18 March 1998)


cabinet: State Council appointed by the National People's Congress (NPC)


elections: president and vice president elected by the National People's Congress for five-year terms; elections last held 16-18 March 1998 (next to be held NA March 2003); premier nominated by the president, confirmed by the National People's Congress


election results: JIANG Zemin reelected president by the Ninth National People's Congress with a total of 2,882 votes (36 delegates voted against him, 29 abstained, and 32 did not vote); HU Jintao elected vice president by the Ninth National People's Congress with a total of 2,841 votes (67 delegates voted against him, 39 abstained, and 32 did not vote)
Exports 1.37 million bbl/day (2004) $312.8 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Exports - commodities motor vehicles and parts, industrial machinery, aircraft, telecommunications equipment; chemicals, plastics, fertilizers; wood pulp, timber, crude petroleum, natural gas, electricity, aluminum machinery and equipment; textiles and clothing, footwear, toys and sporting goods; mineral fuels
Exports - partners US 85.2%, Japan 2.1%, UK 1.6% (2004) US 20.4%, Hong Kong 17.5%, Japan 16.9%, South Korea 4.7%, Germany 3.7%, Netherlands 2.7%, UK 2.6%, Singapore 2.2%, Taiwan (2001)
Fiscal year 1 April - 31 March calendar year
Flag description two vertical bands of red (hoist and fly side, half width), with white square between them; an 11-pointed red maple leaf is centered in the white square; the official colors of Canada are red and white red with a large yellow five-pointed star and four smaller yellow five-pointed stars (arranged in a vertical arc toward the middle of the flag) in the upper hoist-side corner
GDP - purchasing power parity - $6 trillion (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 2.3%


industry: 26.4%


services: 71.3% (2004 est.)
agriculture: 18%


industry: 49%


services: 33% (2001 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $31,500 (2004 est.) purchasing power parity - $4,600 (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 2.4% (2004 est.) 8% (official estimate) (2002 est.)
Geographic coordinates 60 00 N, 95 00 W 35 00 N, 105 00 E
Geography - note second-largest country in world (after Russia); strategic location between Russia and US via north polar route; approximately 90% of the population is concentrated within 160 km of the US border world's fourth-largest country (after Russia, Canada, and US); Mount Everest on the border with Nepal, is the world's tallest peak; soybean, one of the oldest of cultivated crops, is believed to have originated in China
Heliports 319 (2004) -
Highways total: 1,408,800 km


paved: 497,306 km (including 16,900 km of expressways)


unpaved: 911,494 km (2002)
total: 1.4 million km


paved: 271,300 km (with at least 16,000 km of expressways)


unpaved: 1,128,700 km (1999)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 2.8%


highest 10%: 23.8% (1994)
lowest 10%: 2%


highest 10%: 30% (1998)
Illicit drugs illicit producer of cannabis for the domestic drug market and export to US; use of hydroponics technology permits growers to plant large quantities of high-quality marijuana indoors; transit point for heroin and cocaine entering the US market; vulnerable to narcotics money laundering because of its mature financial services sector major transshipment point for heroin produced in the Golden Triangle; growing domestic drug abuse problem; source country for chemical precursors and methamphetamine
Imports 987,000 bbl/day (2004) $268.6 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Imports - commodities machinery and equipment, motor vehicles and parts, crude oil, chemicals, electricity, durable consumer goods machinery and equipment, mineral fuels, plastics, iron and steel, chemicals
Imports - partners US 58.9%, China 6.8%, Mexico 3.8% (2004) Japan 17.6%, Taiwan 11.2%, US 10.8%, South Korea 9.6%, Germany 5.7%, Hong Kong 3.9%, Russia 3.3%, Malaysia 2.5% (2001)
Independence 1 July 1867 (union of British North American colonies); 11 December 1931 (independence recognized) 221 BC (unification under the Qin or Ch'in Dynasty 221 BC; Qing or Ch'ing Dynasty replaced by the Republic on 12 February 1912; People's Republic established 1 October 1949)
Industrial production growth rate 2% (2004 est.) 13.5% (2002 est.)
Industries transportation equipment, chemicals, processed and unprocessed minerals, food products; wood and paper products; fish products, petroleum and natural gas iron and steel, coal, machine building, armaments, textiles and apparel, petroleum, cement, chemical fertilizers, footwear, toys, food processing, automobiles, consumer electronics, telecommunications
Infant mortality rate total: 4.75 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 5.21 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 4.27 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
27.25 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 1.9% (2004 est.) -0.8% (2002 est.)
International organization participation ACCT, AfDB, APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, C, CDB, CE (observer), EAPC, EBRD, ESA (cooperating state), FAO, G-7, G-8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS, OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNMOVIC, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC AfDB, APEC, ARF (dialogue partner), AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), BIS, CCC, CDB, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MINURSO, MONUC, NAM (observer), OPCW, PCA, UN, UN Security Council, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMOVIC, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) - 3 (2000)
Irrigated land 7,200 sq km (1998 est.) 525,800 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch Supreme Court of Canada (judges are appointed by the prime minister through the governor general); Federal Court of Canada; Federal Court of Appeal; Provincial Courts (these are named variously Court of Appeal, Court of Queens Bench, Superior Court, Supreme Court, and Court of Justice) Supreme People's Court (judges appointed by the National People's Congress); Local Peoples Courts (comprise higher, intermediate and local courts); Special Peoples Courts (primarily military, maritime, and railway transport courts)
Labor force 17.37 million (2004) 706 million (2000 est.)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 3%, manufacturing 15%, construction 5%, services 74%, other 3% (2000) agriculture 50%, industry 23%, services 27% (2001 est.)
Land boundaries total: 8,893 km


border countries: US 8,893 km (includes 2,477 km with Alaska)
total: 22,147.34 km


border countries: Afghanistan 76 km, Bhutan 470 km, Burma 2,185 km, Hong Kong 30 km, India 3,380 km, Kazakhstan 1,533 km, North Korea 1,416 km, Kyrgyzstan 858 km, Laos 423 km, Macau 0.34 km, Mongolia 4,677 km, Nepal 1,236 km, Pakistan 523 km, Russia (northeast) 3,605 km, Russia (northwest) 40 km, Tajikistan 414 km, Vietnam 1,281 km
Land use arable land: 4.96%


permanent crops: 0.02%


other: 95.02% (2001)
arable land: 13.31%


permanent crops: 1.2%


other: 85.49% (1998 est.)
Languages English (official) 59.3%, French (official) 23.2%, other 17.5% Standard Chinese or Mandarin (Putonghua, based on the Beijing dialect), Yue (Cantonese), Wu (Shanghaiese), Minbei (Fuzhou), Minnan (Hokkien-Taiwanese), Xiang, Gan, Hakka dialects, minority languages (see Ethnic groups entry)
Legal system based on English common law, except in Quebec, where civil law system based on French law prevails; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations a complex amalgam of custom and statute, largely criminal law; rudimentary civil code in effect since 1 January 1987; new legal codes in effect since 1 January 1980; continuing efforts are being made to improve civil, administrative, criminal, and commercial law
Legislative branch bicameral Parliament or Parlement consists of the Senate or Senat (members appointed by the governor general with the advice of the prime minister and serve until reaching 75 years of age; its normal limit is 105 senators) and the House of Commons or Chambre des Communes (308 seats; members elected by direct, popular vote to serve for up to five-year terms)


elections: House of Commons - last held 28 June 2004 (next to be held by NA 2009)


election results: House of Commons - percent of vote by party - Liberal Party 36.7%, Conservative Party 29.6%, New Democratic Party 15.7%, Bloc Quebecois 12.4%, Greens 4.3%, independents 0.4%, other 0.9%; seats by party - Liberal Party 134, Conservative Party 99, Bloc Quebecois 54, New Democratic Party 19, independent 2
unicameral National People's Congress or Quanguo Renmin Daibiao Dahui (2,979 seats; members elected by municipal, regional, and provincial people's congresses to serve five-year terms)


elections: last held NA December 1997-NA February 1998 (next to be held late 2002-NA March 2003)


election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - NA
Life expectancy at birth total population: 80.1 years


male: 76.73 years


female: 83.63 years (2005 est.)
total population: 71.86 years


male: 70.02 years


female: 73.86 years (2002 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 97% (1986 est.)


male: NA%


female: NA%
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 81.5%


male: 89.9%


female: 72.7% (1995 est.)
Location Northern North America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean on the east, North Pacific Ocean on the west, and the Arctic Ocean on the north, north of the conterminous US Eastern Asia, bordering the East China Sea, Korea Bay, Yellow Sea, and South China Sea, between North Korea and Vietnam
Map references North America Asia
Maritime claims territorial sea: 12 nm


contiguous zone: 24 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm


continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
contiguous zone: 24 NM


continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin


territorial sea: 12 NM


exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
Merchant marine total: 169 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,784,229 GRT/2,657,499 DWT


by type: bulk carrier 22, cargo 49, chemical tanker 6, combination ore/oil 1, container 1, passenger 6, passenger/cargo 65, petroleum tanker 13, roll on/roll off 6


foreign-owned: 6 (France 1, Germany 3, United States 2)


registered in other countries: 112 (2005)
total: 1,764 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 16,915,047 GRT/25,366,296 DWT


ships by type: barge carrier 2, bulk 328, cargo 822, chemical tanker 25, combination bulk 10, combination ore/oil 1, container 134, liquefied gas 26, multi-functional large-load carrier 6, passenger 7, passenger/cargo 45, petroleum tanker 263, refrigerated cargo 26, roll on/roll off 23, short-sea passenger 42, specialized tanker 3, vehicle carrier 1


note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Croatia 1, Germany 1, Hong Kong 16, Japan 2, Panama 2, South Korea 1, Spain 1, Taiwan 9, Tanzania 1, Turkey 1 (2002 est.)
Military branches Canadian Armed Forces: Land Forces Command, Maritime Command, Air Command, Canada Command (homeland security) to be operational in early 2006 (2005) People's Liberation Army (PLA): comprises ground forces, Navy (including naval infantry and naval aviation), Air Force, and II Artillery Corps (strategic missile force), People's Armed Police Force (internal security troops, nominally a state security body but included by the Chinese as part of the "armed forces" and considered to be an adjunct to the PLA), militia
Military expenditures - dollar figure $9,801.7 million (2003) $20.048 billion (2002); note - this is the officially announced figure, but actual defense spending more likely ranges from $45 billion to $65 billion for 2002
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 1.1% (2003) 1.6% (2002); note - this is the officially announced figure, but actual defense spending is more likely between 3.5% to 5.0% of GDP for 2002
Military manpower - availability - males age 15-49: 370,087,489 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service - males age 15-49: 203,003,036 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - military age - 18 years of age (2002 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually - males: 10,089,458 (2002 est.)
National holiday Canada Day, 1 July (1867) Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China, 1 October (1949)
Nationality noun: Canadian(s)


adjective: Canadian
noun: Chinese (singular and plural)


adjective: Chinese
Natural hazards continuous permafrost in north is a serious obstacle to development; cyclonic storms form east of the Rocky Mountains, a result of the mixing of air masses from the Arctic, Pacific, and North American interior, and produce most of the country's rain and snow east of the mountains frequent typhoons (about five per year along southern and eastern coasts); damaging floods; tsunamis; earthquakes; droughts; land subsidence
Natural resources iron ore, nickel, zinc, copper, gold, lead, molybdenum, potash, diamonds, silver, fish, timber, wildlife, coal, petroleum, natural gas, hydropower coal, iron ore, petroleum, natural gas, mercury, tin, tungsten, antimony, manganese, molybdenum, vanadium, magnetite, aluminum, lead, zinc, uranium, hydropower potential (world's largest)
Net migration rate 5.9 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) -0.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Pipelines crude and refined oil 23,564 km; liquid petroleum gas 74,980 km (2003) crude oil 9,070 km; petroleum products 560 km; natural gas 9,383 km (1998)
Political parties and leaders Bloc Quebecois [Gilles DUCEPPE]; Conservative Party of Canada (a merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party) [Stephen HARPER]; Green Party [Jim HARRIS]; Liberal Party [Paul MARTIN]; New Democratic Party [Jack LAYTON] Chinese Communist Party or CCP [HU Jintao, General Secretary of the Central Committee]; eight registered small parties controlled by CCP
Political pressure groups and leaders NA no substantial political opposition groups exist, although the government has identified the Falungong sect and the China Democracy Party as potential rivals
Population 32,805,041 (July 2005 est.) 1,284,303,705 (July 2002 est.)
Population below poverty line NA 10% (2001 est.)
Population growth rate 0.9% (2005 est.) 0.87% (2002 est.)
Ports and harbors Fraser River Port, Goderich, Montreal, Port Cartier, Quebec, Saint John's (Newfoundland), Sept Isles, Vancouver Dalian, Fuzhou, Guangzhou, Haikou, Huangpu, Lianyungang, Nanjing, Nantong, Ningbo, Qingdao, Qinhuangdao, Shanghai, Shantou, Shenzhen, Tianjin, Wenzhou, Xiamen, Xingang, Yantai, Zhanjiang (2001)
Radio broadcast stations AM 245, FM 582, shortwave 6 (2004) AM 369, FM 259, shortwave 45 (1998)
Radios - 417 million (1997)
Railways total: 48,683 km


standard gauge: 48,683 km 1.435-m gauge (2004)
total: 67,524 km (including 5,400 km of provincial "local" rails)


standard gauge: 63,924 km 1.435-m gauge (13,362 km electrified; 20,250 km double-track)


narrow gauge: 3,600 km 0.750-m and 1.000-m gauge local industrial lines (1999 est.)
Religions Roman Catholic 42.6%, Protestant 23.3% (including United Church 9.5%, Anglican 6.8%, Baptist 2.4%, Lutheran 2%), other Christian 4.4%, Muslim 1.9%, other and unspecified 11.8%, none 16% (2001 census) Daoist (Taoist), Buddhist, Muslim 1%-2%, Christian 3%-4%


note: officially atheist (2002 est.)
Sex ratio at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.74 male(s)/female


total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
at birth: 1.09 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.1 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.89 male(s)/female


total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2002 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment: excellent service provided by modern technology


domestic: domestic satellite system with about 300 earth stations


international: country code - 1-xxx; 5 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (4 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Pacific Ocean) and 2 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region)
general assessment: domestic and international services are increasingly available for private use; unevenly distributed domestic system serves principal cities, industrial centers, and many towns


domestic: interprovincial fiber-optic trunk lines and cellular telephone systems have been installed; a domestic satellite system with 55 earth stations is in place


international: satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (4 Pacific Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region) and 1 Inmarsat (Pacific and Indian Ocean regions); several international fiber-optic links to Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Russia, and Germany (2000)
Telephones - main lines in use 19,950,900 (2003) 135 million (2000)
Telephones - mobile cellular 13,221,800 (2003) 65 million (January 2001)
Television broadcast stations 80 (plus many repeaters) (1997) 3,240 (of which 209 are operated by China Central Television, 31 are provincial TV stations and nearly 3,000 are local city stations) (1997)
Terrain mostly plains with mountains in west and lowlands in southeast mostly mountains, high plateaus, deserts in west; plains, deltas, and hills in east
Total fertility rate 1.61 children born/woman (2005 est.) 1.82 children born/woman (2002 est.)
Unemployment rate 7% (2004) urban unemployment roughly 10%; substantial unemployment and underemployment in rural areas (2002 est.)
Waterways 631 km


note: Saint Lawrence Seaway of 3,769 km, including the Saint Lawrence River of 3,058 km, shared with United States (2003)
110,000 km (1999)
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