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Compare Taiwan (2004) - Poland (2006)
Compare Taiwan (2004) z Poland (2006)
| Taiwan (2004) | Poland (2006) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | 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 |
16 provinces (wojewodztwa, singular - wojewodztwo); Dolnoslaskie, Kujawsko-Pomorskie, Lodzkie, Lubelskie, Lubuskie, Malopolskie, Mazowieckie, Opolskie, Podkarpackie, Podlaskie, Pomorskie, Slaskie, Swietokrzyskie, Warminsko-Mazurskie, Wielkopolskie, Zachodniopomorskie |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 19.9% (male 2,359,467; female 2,167,438)
15-64 years: 70.7% (male 8,149,231; female 7,924,774) 65 years and over: 9.4% (male 1,091,473; female 1,057,455) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years: 15.9% (male 3,142,811/female 2,976,363)
15-64 years: 70.8% (male 13,585,306/female 13,704,763) 65 years and over: 13.3% (male 1,961,326/female 3,166,300) (2006 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | rice, corn, vegetables, fruit, tea; pigs, poultry, beef, milk, fish | potatoes, fruits, vegetables, wheat; poultry, eggs, pork, dairy |
| Airports | 40 (2003 est.) | 122 (2006) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 37
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: 1 (2004 est.) |
total: 83
over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 29 1,524 to 2,437 m: 40 914 to 1,523 m: 8 under 914 m: 2 (2006) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
total: 39
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 21 (2006) |
| Area | total: 35,980 sq km
land: 32,260 sq km water: 3,720 sq km note: includes the Pescadores, Matsu, and Quemoy |
total: 312,685 sq km
land: 304,465 sq km water: 8,220 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland and Delaware combined | slightly smaller than New Mexico |
| Background | 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. | Poland is an ancient nation that was conceived near the middle of the 10th century. Its golden age occurred in the 16th century. During the following century, the strengthening of the gentry and internal disorders weakened the nation. In a series of agreements between 1772 and 1795, Russia, Prussia, and Austria partitioned Poland amongst themselves. Poland regained its independence in 1918 only to be overrun by Germany and the Soviet Union in World War II. It became a Soviet satellite state following the war, but its government was comparatively tolerant and progressive. Labor turmoil in 1980 led to the formation of the independent trade union "Solidarity" that over time became a political force and by 1990 had swept parliamentary elections and the presidency. A "shock therapy" program during the early 1990s enabled the country to transform its economy into one of the most robust in Central Europe, but Poland still faces the lingering challenges of high unemployment, underdeveloped and dilapidated infrastructure, and a poor rural underclass. Solidarity suffered a major defeat in the 2001 parliamentary elections when it failed to elect a single deputy to the lower house of Parliament, and the new leaders of the Solidarity Trade Union subsequently pledged to reduce the Trade Union's political role. Poland joined NATO in 1999 and the European Union in 2004. With its transformation to a democratic, market-oriented country largely completed, Poland is an increasingly active member of Euro-Atlantic organizations. |
| Birth rate | 12.7 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 9.85 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
| Budget | revenues: $56.58 billion
expenditures: $69.21 billion, including capital expenditures of $14.4 billion (2003 est.) |
revenues: $52.73 billion
expenditures: $63.22 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.) |
| Capital | Taipei | name: Warsaw
geographic coordinates: 52 15 N, 21 00 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October |
| Climate | tropical; marine; rainy season during southwest monsoon (June to August); cloudiness is persistent and extensive all year | temperate with cold, cloudy, moderately severe winters with frequent precipitation; mild summers with frequent showers and thundershowers |
| Coastline | 1,566.3 km | 491 km |
| Constitution | 25 December 1946, amended in 1992, 1994, 1997, 1999, and 2000 | adopted by the National Assembly 2 April 1997, passed by national referendum 25 May 1997, effective 17 October 1997 |
| Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Taiwan local long form: none local short form: T'ai-wan former: Formosa |
conventional long form: Republic of Poland
conventional short form: Poland local long form: Rzeczpospolita Polska local short form: Polska |
| Currency | new Taiwan dollar (TWD) | - |
| Death rate | 6.29 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 9.89 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
| Debt - external | $53.44 billion (2003) | $101.5 billion (2005 est.) |
| Diplomatic representation from 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 | chief of mission: Ambassador Victor ASHE
embassy: Aleje Ujazdowskie 29/31 00-540 Warsaw mailing address: American Embassy Warsaw, US Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-5010 (pouch) telephone: [48] (22) 504-2000 FAX: [48] (22) 504-2688 consulate(s) general: Krakow |
| Diplomatic representation in 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 | chief of mission: Ambassador Janusz REITER
chancery: 2640 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 234-3800 through 3802 FAX: [1] (202) 328-6271 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, New York |
| Disputes - international | 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 asserted claims to the Japanese-administered Senkaku Islands (Diaoyu Tai) with increased media coverage and protest actions | as a member state that forms part of the EU's external border, Poland must implement the strict Schengen border rules |
| Economic aid - recipient | - | $13.9 billion in available EU structural adjustment and cohesion funds (2004-06) |
| Economy - overview | 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 2% to GDP, down from 32% in 1952. While Taiwan is a major investor throughout Southeast Asia, China has become the largest destination for investment and 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. Growing economic ties with China are a dominant long-term factor. Exports to China - mainly parts and equipment for the assembly of goods for export to developed countries - drove Taiwan's economic recovery in 2002. Although the SARS epidemic, Typhoon Maemi, corporate scandals, and a drop in consumer spending caused GDP growth to contract to 3.2% in 2003, increasingly strong export performance kept Taiwan's economy on track, and the government expects Taiwan's economy to grow 4.1% in 2004. | Poland has steadfastly pursued a policy of economic liberalization throughout the 1990s and today stands out as a success story among transition economies. Even so, much remains to be done, especially in bringing down the unemployment rate - currently the highest in the EU. The privatization of small- and medium-sized state-owned companies and a liberal law on establishing new firms has encouraged the development of the private business sector, but legal and bureaucratic obstacles alongside persistent corruption are hampering its further development. Poland's agricultural sector remains handicapped by surplus labor, inefficient small farms, and lack of investment. Restructuring and privatization of "sensitive sectors" (e.g., coal, steel, railroads, and energy), while recently initiated, have stalled. Reforms in health care, education, the pension system, and state administration have resulted in larger-than-expected fiscal pressures. Further progress in public finance depends mainly on reducing losses in Polish state enterprises, restraining entitlements, and overhauling the tax code to incorporate the growing gray economy and farmers, most of whom pay no tax. The previous Socialist-led government introduced a package of social and administrative spending cuts to reduce public spending by about $17 billion through 2007, but full implementation of the plan was trumped by election-year politics in 2005. The right-wing Law and Justice party won parliamentary elections in September, and Lech KACZYNSKI won the presidential election in October 2005, running on a state-interventionist fiscal and monetary platform. Poland joined the EU in May 2004, and surging exports to the EU contributed to Poland's strong growth in 2004, though its competitiveness could be threatened by the zloty's appreciation. GDP per capita roughly equals that of the three Baltic states. Poland stands to benefit from nearly $23.2 billion in EU funds, available through 2006. Farmers have already begun to reap the rewards of membership via booming exports, higher food prices, and EU agricultural subsidies. |
| Electricity - consumption | 140.5 billion kWh (2001) | 121.3 billion kWh (2004) |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | 15.2 billion kWh (2004) |
| Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | 5 billion kWh (2004) |
| Electricity - production | 151.1 billion kWh (2001) | 150.8 billion kWh (2004) |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Yu Shan 3,952 m |
lowest point: near Raczki Elblaskie -2 m
highest point: Rysy 2,499 m |
| Environment - current issues | air pollution; water pollution from industrial emissions, raw sewage; contamination of drinking water supplies; trade in endangered species; low-level radioactive waste disposal | situation has improved since 1989 due to decline in heavy industry and increased environmental concern by post-Communist governments; air pollution nonetheless remains serious because of sulfur dioxide emissions from coal-fired power plants, and the resulting acid rain has caused forest damage; water pollution from industrial and municipal sources is also a problem, as is disposal of hazardous wastes; pollution levels should continue to decrease as industrial establishments bring their facilities up to EU code, but at substantial cost to business and the government |
| 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 |
party to: Air Pollution, 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, Kyoto Protocol, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94 |
| Ethnic groups | Taiwanese (including Hakka) 84%, mainland Chinese 14%, aborigine 2% | Polish 96.7%, German 0.4%, Belarusian 0.1%, Ukrainian 0.1%, other and unspecified 2.7% (2002 census) |
| Exchange rates | new Taiwan dollars per US dollar - 34.418 (2003), 34.575 (2002), 33.8 (2001), 33.09 (2000), 31.6 (1999) | zlotych per US dollar - 3.2355 (2005), 3.6576 (2004), 3.8891 (2003), 4.08 (2002), 4.0939 (2001)
note: zlotych is the plural form of zloty |
| Executive branch | 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) YEH Chu-lan (since 20 May 2004) 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% |
chief of state: President Lech KACZYNSKI (since 23 December 2005)
head of government: Prime Minister Jaroslaw KACZYNSKI (since 10 July 2006); Deputy Prime Ministers Ludwik DORN (since 23 November 2005), Roman GIERTYCH (since 5 May 2006), Zyta GILOWSKA (since 22 September 2006), Andrzej LEPPER (since 16 October 2006) cabinet: Council of Ministers responsible to the prime minister and the Sejm; the prime minister proposes, the president appoints, and the Sejm approves the Council of Ministers elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 9 and 23 October 2005 (next to be held October 2010); prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president and confirmed by the Sejm election results: Lech KACZYNSKI elected president; percent of popular vote - Lech KACZYNSKI 54%, Donald Tusk 46% |
| Exports | NA (2001) | 53,000 bbl/day (2001) |
| Exports - commodities | computer products and electrical equipment, metals, textiles, plastics and rubber products, chemicals (2002) | machinery and transport equipment 37.8%, intermediate manufactured goods 23.7%, miscellaneous manufactured goods 17.1%, food and live animals 7.6% (2003) |
| Exports - partners | China 25.3%, US 20.5%, Japan 9.2% (2002) | Germany 28.2%, France 6.2%, Italy 6.1%, UK 5.6%, Czech Republic 4.6%, Russia 4.4%, Netherlands 4.2% (2005) |
| Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June (up to FY98/99); 1 July 1999 - 31 December 2000 for FY00; calendar year (after FY00) | calendar year |
| Flag description | red with a dark blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner bearing a white sun with 12 triangular rays | two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red; similar to the flags of Indonesia and Monaco which are red (top) and white |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $528.6 billion (2003 est.) | - |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 1.8%
industry: 30.3% services: 67.9% (2003) |
agriculture: 5%
industry: 31.1% services: 64% (2005 est.) |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $23,400 (2003 est.) | - |
| GDP - real growth rate | 3.2% (2003 est.) | 3.4% (2005 est.) |
| Geographic coordinates | 23 30 N, 121 00 E | 52 00 N, 20 00 E |
| Geography - note | strategic location adjacent to both the Taiwan Strait and the Luzon Strait | historically, an area of conflict because of flat terrain and the lack of natural barriers on the North European Plain |
| Heliports | 3 (2003 est.) | 3 (2006) |
| Highways | total: 35,931 km
paved: 31,583 km (including 608 km of expressways) unpaved: 4,348 km (2000) |
- |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 6.7%
highest 10%: 41.1% (2002 est.) |
lowest 10%: 3.1%
highest 10%: 26.7% (2002) |
| 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 | major illicit producer of synthetic drugs for the international market; minor transshipment point for Asian and Latin American illicit drugs to Western Europe |
| Imports | NA (2001) | 413,700 bbl/day (2001) |
| Imports - commodities | machinery and electrical equipment 44.5%, minerals, precision instruments (2002) | machinery and transport equipment 38%, intermediate manufactured goods 21%, chemicals 14.8%, minerals, fuels, lubricants, and related materials 9.1% (2003) |
| Imports - partners | Japan 24.2%, US 16.1%, China 7.1%, South Korea 6.9% (2002) | Germany 29.6%, Russia 8.7%, Italy 6.6%, Netherlands 5.9%, France 5.7% (2005) |
| Independence | - | 11 November 1918 (independent republic proclaimed) |
| Industrial production growth rate | 8.4% (2003) | 3.7% (2005 est.) |
| Industries | electronics, petroleum refining, chemicals, textiles, iron and steel, machinery, cement, food processing | machine building, iron and steel, coal mining, chemicals, shipbuilding, food processing, glass, beverages, textiles |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 6.52 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 7.21 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.77 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
total: 7.22 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 7.95 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.44 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | -0.3% (2003 est.) | 2.2% (2005 est.) |
| International organization participation | APEC, AsDB, BCIE, ICC, ICFTU, IOC, WCL, WTO | ACCT (observer), Arctic Council (observer), Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CBSS, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OIF (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNOMIG, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (associate), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC |
| Irrigated land | NA sq km | 1,000 sq km (2003) |
| Judicial branch | Judicial Yuan (justices appointed by the president with consent of the Legislative Yuan) | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president on the recommendation of the National Council of the Judiciary for an indefinite period); Constitutional Tribunal (judges are chosen by the Sejm for nine-year terms) |
| Labor force | 10.08 million (2003) | 17.1 million (2005 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 7.5%, industry 35%, services 57% (2001 est.) | agriculture: 16.1%
industry: 29% services: 54.9% (2002) |
| Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 3,056 km
border countries: Belarus 416 km, Czech Republic 790 km, Germany 467 km, Lithuania 103 km, Russia (Kaliningrad Oblast) 210 km, Slovakia 541 km, Ukraine 529 km |
| Land use | arable land: 24%
permanent crops: 1% other: 75% (2001) |
arable land: 40.25%
permanent crops: 1% other: 58.75% (2005) |
| Languages | Mandarin Chinese (official), Taiwanese (Min), Hakka dialects | Polish 97.8%, other and unspecified 2.2% (2002 census) |
| Legal system | based on civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations | mixture of Continental (Napoleonic) civil law and holdover Communist legal theory; changes being gradually introduced as part of broader democratization process; limited judicial review of legislative acts, but rulings of the Constitutional Tribunal are final; court decisions can be appealed to the European Court of Justice in Strasbourg; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
| Legislative branch | 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: the number of seats in the legislature may be reduced from 225 to 113 beginning with the election in 2007 if a proposed constitutional amendment is approved elections: Legislative Yuan - last held 11 December 2004 (next to be held in December 2007) according to proposed constitutional amendment 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 |
bicameral legislature consisting of an upper house, the Senate or Senat (100 seats; members are elected by a majority vote on a provincial basis to serve four-year terms), and a lower house, the Sejm (460 seats; members are elected under a complex system of proportional representation to serve four-year terms); the designation of National Assembly or Zgromadzenie Narodowe is only used on those rare occasions when the two houses meet jointly
elections: Senate - last held 25 September 2005 (next to be held by September 2009); Sejm elections last held 25 September 2005 (next to be held by September 2009) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PiS 49, PO 34, LPR 7, SO 3, PSL 2, independents 5; Sejm - percent of vote by party - PiS 27%, PO 24.1%, SO 11.4%, SLD 11.3%, LPR 8%, PSL 7%, other 11.2%; seats by party - PiS 155, PO 133, SO 56, SLD 55, LPR 34, PSL 25, German minorities 2 note: two seats are assigned to ethnic minority parties in the Sejm only |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 77.06 years
male: 74.31 years female: 80.08 years (2004 est.) |
total population: 74.97 years
male: 70.95 years female: 79.23 years (2006 est.) |
| Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 96.1% (2003) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.8% male: 99.8% female: 99.7% (2003 est.) |
| Location | 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 | Central Europe, east of Germany |
| Map references | Southeast Asia | Europe |
| Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: defined by international treaties |
| Merchant marine | total: 130 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 3,417,768 GRT/5,617,318 DWT
by type: bulk 36, cargo 23, chemical tanker 2, combination bulk 3, container 37, petroleum tanker 17, refrigerated cargo 10, roll on/roll off 2 foreign-owned: Cuba 1, Hong Kong 4 registered in other countries: 457 (2004 est.) |
total: 11 ships (1000 GRT or over) 55,701 GRT/45,082 DWT
by type: cargo 6, chemical tanker 2, passenger/cargo 1, roll on/roll off 1, vehicle carrier 1 foreign-owned: 1 (Nigeria 1) registered in other countries: 106 (Antigua and Barbuda 3, Bahamas 15, Belize 2, Cyprus 20, Liberia 14, Malta 27, Norway 2, Panama 15, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1, Slovakia 2, Vanuatu 5) (2006) |
| Military branches | Army, Navy (including Marine Corps), Air Force, Coast Guard Administration, Armed Forces Reserve Command, Combined Service Forces Command, Armed Forces Police Command | Polish Armed Forces: Land Forces (includes Navy (Marynarka Wojenna, MW)), Polish Air Force (Polskie Sily Powietrzne, PSP) (2006) |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | $7,611.7 million (2003) | $3.5 billion (2002) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.7% (2003) | 1.71% (2002) |
| Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 6,556,484 (2004 est.) | - |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 4,992,737 (2004 est.) | - |
| Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 182,677 (2004 est.) | - |
| National holiday | Republic Day (Anniversary of the Chinese Revolution), 10 October (1911) | Constitution Day, 3 May (1791) |
| Nationality | noun: Chinese/Taiwanese (singular and plural)
adjective: Chinese/Taiwanese |
noun: Pole(s)
adjective: Polish |
| Natural hazards | earthquakes and typhoons | flooding |
| Natural resources | small deposits of coal, natural gas, limestone, marble, and asbestos | coal, sulfur, copper, natural gas, silver, lead, salt, amber, arable land |
| Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | -0.46 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
| Pipelines | condensate 25 km; gas 435 km (2004) | gas 13,552 km; oil 1,384 km; refined products 777 km (2006) |
| Political parties and leaders | Democratic Progressive Party or DPP [SU Tseng-chang, chairman]; Kuomintang or KMT (Nationalist Party) [LIEN Chan, 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 | Catholic-National Movement or RKN [Antoni MACIEREWICZ]; Civic Platform or PO [Donald TUSK]; Conservative Peasants Party or SKL [Artur BALASZ]; Democratic Left Alliance or SLD [Wojciech OLEJNICZAK]; Democratic Party or PD [Wladyslaw FRASYNIUK]; Dom Ojczysty (Fatherland Home); German Minority of Lower Silesia or MNSO [Henryk KROLL]; Law and Justice or PiS [Jaroslaw KACZYNSKI]; League of Polish Families or LPR [Marek KOTLINOWSKI]; Peasant-Democratic Party or PLD [Roman JAGIELINSKI]; Polish Accord or PP [Jan LOPUSZANSKI]; Polish Peasant Party or PSL [Waldemar PAWLAK]; Ruch Patriotyczny or RP [Jan OLSZEWSKI]; Samoobrona or SO [Andrzej LEPPER]; Social Democratic Party of Poland or SDPL [Marek BOROWSKI]; Social Movement or RS [Krzysztof PIESIEWICZ]; Union of Labor or UP [Andrzej SPYCHALSKI] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | 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 |
All Poland Trade Union Alliance or OPZZ (trade union) [Jan GUZ]; Roman Catholic Church [Cardinal Jozef GLEMP]; Solidarity Trade Union [Janusz SNIADEK] |
| Population | 22,749,838 (July 2004 est.) | 38,536,869 (July 2006 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 1% (2000 est.) | 17% (2003 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 0.64% (2004 est.) | -0.05% (2006 est.) |
| Ports and harbors | Chi-lung (Keelung), Hua-lien, Kao-hsiung, Su-ao, T'ai-chung | - |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 218, FM 333, shortwave 50 (1999) | AM 14, FM 777, shortwave 1 (1998) |
| Railways | total: 2,544 km
narrow gauge: 1,108 km 1.067-m gauge (519 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 (2003) |
total: 23,072 km
broad gauge: 629 km 1.524-m gauge standard gauge: 22,443 km 1.435-m gauge (20,555 km operational; 11,910 km electrified) (2005) |
| Religions | mixture of Buddhist, Confucian, and Taoist 93%, Christian 4.5%, other 2.5% | Roman Catholic 89.8% (about 75% practicing), Eastern Orthodox 1.3%, Protestant 0.3%, other 0.3%, unspecified 8.3% (2002) |
| Sex ratio | 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: 1.03 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.62 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
| Suffrage | 20 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
| Telephone system | 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) |
general assessment: modernization of the telecommunications network has accelerated with market based competition finalized in 2003; fixed-line service, dominated by the former state-owned company, is dwarfed by the growth in wireless telephony
domestic: wireless service, available since 1993 (GSM service available since 1996) and provided by three nation-wide networks, has grown rapidly in response to the weak fixed-line coverage; third generation UMTS service available in urban areas; cellular coverage is generally good with more gaps in the east; fixed-line service is growing slowly and still lags in rural areas international: country code - 48; international direct dialing with automated exchanges; satellite earth station - 1 (Intelsat, Eutelsat, Inmarsat, and Intersputnik) |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 13.355 million (2003) | 11.803 million (2005) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 25,089,600 (2003) | 29,166,400 (2005) |
| Television broadcast stations | 29 (plus two repeaters) (1997) | 40 (2006) |
| Terrain | eastern two-thirds mostly rugged mountains; flat to gently rolling plains in west | mostly flat plain; mountains along southern border |
| Total fertility rate | 1.57 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 1.25 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 5% (2003 est.) | 18.2% (2005 est.) |
| Waterways | - | 3,997 km (navigable rivers and canals) (2005) |
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