Compare Guam (2007) - Taiwan (2006)

Compare Guam (2007) z Taiwan (2006)

	Guam (2007)	Taiwan (2006)

Administrative divisions	none (territory of the US)	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
Age structure	0-14 years: 28.6% (male 25,686/female 23,938) 15-64 years: 64.5% (male 57,023/female 54,872) 65 years and over: 6.9% (male 5,592/female 6,345) (2007 est.)	0-14 years: 19.4% (male 2,330,951/female 2,140,965) 15-64 years: 70.8% (male 8,269,421/female 8,040,169) 65 years and over: 9.8% (male 1,123,429/female 1,131,152) (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products	fruits, copra, vegetables; eggs, pork, poultry, beef	rice, corn, vegetables, fruit, tea; pigs, poultry, beef, milk; fish
Airports	5 (2007)	42 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 4 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007)	total: 38 over 3,047 m: 8 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 11 914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 2 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2007)	total: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 3 (2006)
Area	total: 541.3 sq km land: 541.3 sq km water: 0 sq km	total: 35,980 sq km land: 32,260 sq km water: 3,720 sq km note: includes the Pescadores, Matsu, and Quemoy
Area - comparative	three times the size of Washington, DC	slightly smaller than Maryland and Delaware combined
Background	Guam was ceded to the US by Spain in 1898. Captured by the Japanese in 1941, it was retaken by the US three years later. The military installation on the island is one of the most strategically important US bases in the Pacific.	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.
Birth rate	18.56 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	12.56 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget	revenues: $319.6 million expenditures: $427.8 million (2002 est.)	revenues: $41.67 billion expenditures: $50.26 billion; including capital expenditures of $14.4 billion (2005 est.)
Capital	name: Hagatna (Agana) geographic coordinates: 13 28 N, 144 44 E time difference: UTC+10 (15 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)	name: Taipei geographic coordinates: 25 03 N, 121 30 E time difference: UTC+8 (13 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate	tropical marine; generally warm and humid, moderated by northeast trade winds; dry season (January to June), rainy season (July to December); little seasonal temperature variation	tropical; marine; rainy season during southwest monsoon (June to August); cloudiness is persistent and extensive all year
Coastline	125.5 km	1,566.3 km
Constitution	Organic Act of Guam, 1 August 1950	25 December 1946; amended in 1992, 1994, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2005
Country name	conventional long form: Territory of Guam conventional short form: Guam local long form: Guahan local short form: Guahan	conventional long form: none conventional short form: Taiwan local long form: none local short form: T'ai-wan former: Formosa
Death rate	4.56 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	6.48 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Debt - external	$NA	$87.5 billion (2005 est.)
Dependency status	organized, unincorporated territory of the US with policy relations between Guam and the US under the jurisdiction of the Office of Insular Affairs, US Department of the Interior	-
Diplomatic representation from the US	none (territory of the US)	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
Diplomatic representation in the US	none (territory of the US)	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
Disputes - international	none	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
Economic aid - recipient	Guam receives large transfer payments from the US Federal Treasury ($143 million in 1997) into which Guamanians pay no income or excise taxes; under the provisions of a special law of Congress, the Guam Treasury, rather than the US Treasury, receives federal income taxes paid by military and civilian Federal employees stationed in Guam (2001 est.)	-
Economy - overview	The economy depends largely on US military spending and tourism. Total US grants, wage payments, and procurement outlays amounted to $1.3 billion in 2004. Over the past 30 years, the tourist industry has grown to become the largest income source following national defense. The Guam economy continues to experience expansion in both its tourism and military sectors.	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 and, in 2005, Taiwan's third-largest source of imports after Japan and the US. Taiwan has benefited from cross-Strait economic integration and a sharp increase in world demand to achieve substantial growth in its export sector and a seven-year-high real GDP growth of 6.1% in 2004. However, excess inventory, higher international oil prices, and rising interest rates dampened consumption in developed markets, and GDP growth dropped to 3.8% in 2005. The service sector, which accounts for 69% of Taiwan's GDP, has continued to expand, while unemployment and inflation rates have declined.
Electricity - consumption	1.667 billion kWh (2005)	206.1 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2005)	0 kWh (2004)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2005)	0 kWh (2004)
Electricity - production	1.793 billion kWh (2005)	218.3 billion kWh (2004)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Lamlam 406 m	lowest point: South China Sea 0 m highest point: Yu Shan 3,952 m
Environment - current issues	extirpation of native bird population by the rapid proliferation of the brown tree snake, an exotic, invasive species	air pollution; water pollution from industrial emissions, raw sewage; contamination of drinking water supplies; trade in endangered species; low-level radioactive waste disposal
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
Ethnic groups	Chamorro 37.1%, Filipino 26.3%, other Pacific islander 11.3%, white 6.9%, other Asian 6.3%, other ethnic origin or race 2.3%, mixed 9.8% (2000 census)	Taiwanese (including Hakka) 84%, mainland Chinese 14%, aborigine 2%
Exchange rates	the US dollar is used	new Taiwan dollars per US dollar - 31.71 (2005), 34.418 (2004), 34.575 (2003), 33.8 (2002), 33.09 (2001)
Executive branch	chief of state: President George W. BUSH of the US (since 20 January 2001); Vice President Richard B. CHENEY (since 20 January 2001) head of government: Governor Felix P. CAMACHO (since 6 January 2003); Lieutenant Governor Dr. Michael W. CRUZ (since 1 January 2007) cabinet: heads of executive departments; appointed by the governor with the consent of the Guam legislature elections: under the US Constitution, residents of unincorporated territories, such as Guam, do not vote in elections for US president and vice president; governor and lieutenant governor elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year term (can serve two consecutive terms, then must wait a full term before running again); election last held 7 November 2006 (next to be held in November 2010) election results: Felix P. CAMACHO reelected governor; Dr. Michael W. CRUZ elected lieutenant governor; percent of vote - NA	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) SU Tseng-chang (since 25 January 2006) and Vice Premier (Vice President of the Executive Yuan) TSAI Ing-wen (since 25 January 2006) cabinet: Executive Yuan appointed by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms (eligible for a second term); 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%
Exports	NA bbl/day	NA bbl/day
Exports - commodities	mostly transshipments of refined petroleum products; construction materials, fish, food and beverage products	computer products and electrical equipment, metals, textiles, plastics and rubber products, chemicals (2002)
Exports - partners	Japan 67.2%, Singapore 11.6%, UK 4.8% (2006)	China 21.6%, US 16.22%, Hong Kong 15.1%, Japan 7.7% (2005)
Fiscal year	1 October - 30 September	1 July - 30 June (up to FY98/99); 1 July 1999 - 31 December 2000 for FY00; calendar year (after FY00)
Flag description	territorial flag is dark blue with a narrow red border on all four sides; centered is a red-bordered, pointed, vertical ellipse containing a beach scene, outrigger canoe with sail, and a palm tree with the word GUAM superimposed in bold red letters; US flag is the national flag	red with a dark blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner bearing a white sun with 12 triangular rays
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: NA% industry: NA% services: NA%	agriculture: 1.8% industry: 25.9% services: 72.3% (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	NA%	4% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates	13 28 N, 144 47 E	23 30 N, 121 00 E
Geography - note	largest and southernmost island in the Mariana Islands archipelago; strategic location in western North Pacific Ocean	strategic location adjacent to both the Taiwan Strait and the Luzon Strait
Heliports	-	3 (2006)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%	lowest 10%: 6.7% highest 10%: 41.1% (2002 est.)
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
Imports	NA bbl/day	NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities	petroleum and petroleum products, food, manufactured goods	machinery and electrical equipment 44.5%, minerals, precision instruments (2002)
Imports - partners	Singapore 50%, South Korea 21.4%, Japan 14%, Hong Kong 4.6% (2006)	Japan 25.3%, US 11.6%, China 11%, South Korea 7.3%, Saudi Arabia 4.1% (2005)
Independence	none (territory of the US)	-
Industrial production growth rate	NA%	4.1% (2005 est.)
Industries	US military, tourism, construction, transshipment services, concrete products, printing and publishing, food processing, textiles	electronics, petroleum refining, armaments, chemicals, textiles, iron and steel, machinery, cement, food processing, vehicles, consumer products, pharmaceuticals
Infant mortality rate	total: 6.68 deaths/1,000 live births male: 7.35 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.97 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	total: 6.29 deaths/1,000 live births male: 6.97 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.55 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	2.5% (2005 est.)	2.3% (2005 est.)
International organization participation	IOC, SPC, UPU	APEC, AsDB, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IFRCS, IOC, WCL, WTO note: Taiwan has acquired observer status on the competition committee and special observer status on the Trade Committee of the OECD, and is seeking observer status with the backing of the US in WHO
Irrigated land	NA	NA
Judicial branch	Federal District Court (judge is appointed by the president); Territorial Superior Court (judges appointed for eight-year terms by the governor)	Judicial Yuan (justices appointed by the president with consent of the Legislative Yuan)
Labor force	62,050 (2002 est.)	10.6 million (2005 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 26% industry: 10% services: 64% (2004 est.)	agriculture: 6% industry: 35.8% services: 58.2% (2005 est.)
Land boundaries	0 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 3.64% permanent crops: 18.18% other: 78.18% (2005)	arable land: 24% permanent crops: 1% other: 75% (2001)
Languages	English 38.3%, Chamorro 22.2%, Philippine languages 22.2%, other Pacific island languages 6.8%, Asian languages 7%, other languages 3.5% (2000 census)	Mandarin Chinese (official), Taiwanese (Min), Hakka dialects
Legal system	modeled on US; US federal laws apply	based on civil law system
Legislative branch	unicameral Legislature (15 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve two-year terms) elections: last held 7 November 2006 (next to be held in November 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Republican Party 8, Democratic Party 7 note: Guam elects one nonvoting delegate to the US House of Representatives; election last held 7 November 2006 (next to be held in November 2008); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Democratic Party 1	Legislative Yuan (225 seats - 168 elected by popular vote, 41 elected on basis of proportion of islandwide votes received by participating political parties, eight elected from overseas Chinese constituencies on basis of proportion of island-wide votes received by participating political parties, eight elected by popular vote among aboriginal populations; members serve three-year terms); 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) - see note note: as a result of constitutional amendments approved by National Assembly in June 2005, number of seats in legislature will be reduced from 225 to 113 beginning with election in 2007; amendments also eliminated 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; dissolved in June 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)
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 78.76 years male: 75.69 years female: 82.01 years (2007 est.)	total population: 77.43 years male: 74.67 years female: 80.47 years (2006 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (1990 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 96.1% male: NA% female: NA% (2003)
Location	Oceania, island in the North Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines	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
Map references	Oceania	Southeast Asia
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine	-	total: 112 ships (1000 GRT or over) 2,798,992 GRT/4,652,921 DWT by type: bulk carrier 35, cargo 22, chemical tanker 2, container 25, passenger/cargo 3, petroleum tanker 16, refrigerated cargo 7, roll on/roll off 2 foreign-owned: 3 (Hong Kong 3) registered in other countries: 463 (Bolivia 1, Cambodia 2, Honduras 2, Hong Kong 6, Italy 10, Liberia 69, Malta 2, Panama 308, Singapore 59, UK 1, US 1, unknown 2) (2006)
Military - note	defense is the responsibility of the US	-
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 expenditures - dollar figure	-	$7.93 billion (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	-	2.4% (2005 est.)
National holiday	Discovery Day, first Monday in March (1521)	Republic Day (Anniversary of the Chinese Revolution), 10 October (1911)
Nationality	noun: Guamanian(s) (US citizens) adjective: Guamanian	noun: Taiwan (singular and plural) note: example - he or she is from Taiwan; they are from Taiwan adjective: Taiwan
Natural hazards	frequent squalls during rainy season; relatively rare, but potentially very destructive typhoons (June - December)	earthquakes and typhoons
Natural resources	fishing (largely undeveloped), tourism (especially from Japan)	small deposits of coal, natural gas, limestone, marble, and asbestos
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Pipelines	-	condensate 25 km; gas 661 km (2006)
Political parties and leaders	Democratic Party [leader Michael PHILLIPS]; Republican Party [Philip J. FLORES] (controls the legislature)	Democratic Progressive Party or DPP [YU Shyi-kun]; Kuomintang or KMT (Nationalist Party) [MA Ying-jeou]; People First Party or PFP [James SOONG (SOONG Chu-yu)]; Taiwan Solidarity Union or TSU [SU Chin-chiang]; other minor parties including the Chinese New Party or NP
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	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
Population	173,456 (July 2007 est.)	23,036,087 (July 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line	23% (2001 est.)	0.9% (2005)
Population growth rate	1.4% (2007 est.)	0.61% (2006 est.)
Radio broadcast stations	AM 3, FM 11, shortwave 2 (2005)	AM 218, FM 333, shortwave 50 (1999)
Railways	-	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 carry products and limited numbers of passengers (2005)
Religions	Roman Catholic 85%, other 15% (1999 est.)	mixture of Buddhist, Confucian, and Taoist 93%, Christian 4.5%, other 2.5%
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.073 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.039 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.881 male(s)/female total population: 1.037 male(s)/female (2007 est.)	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: 0.99 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal; US citizens, but do not vote in US presidential elections	20 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: modern system, integrated with US facilities for direct dialing, including free use of 800 numbers domestic: modern digital system, including cellular mobile service and local access to the Internet international: country code - 1-671; major landing point for submarine cables between Asia and the US (Guam is a trans-Pacific communications hub for major carriers linking the US and Asia); satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean)	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)
Telephones - main lines in use	80,000 (2001)	13.615 million (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	98,000 (2004)	22.17 million (2005)
Television broadcast stations	3 (2006)	29 (plus two repeaters) (1997)
Terrain	volcanic origin, surrounded by coral reefs; relatively flat coralline limestone plateau (source of most fresh water), with steep coastal cliffs and narrow coastal plains in north, low hills in center, mountains in south	eastern two-thirds mostly rugged mountains; flat to gently rolling plains in west
Total fertility rate	2.57 children born/woman (2007 est.)	1.57 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate	11.4% (2002 est.)	4.1% (2005 est.)

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