Taiwan (2006) | Jamaica (2008) | |
![]() | ![]() | |
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 |
14 parishes; Clarendon, Hanover, Kingston, Manchester, Portland, Saint Andrew, Saint Ann, Saint Catherine, Saint Elizabeth, Saint James, Saint Mary, Saint Thomas, Trelawny, Westmoreland
note: for local government purposes, Kingston and Saint Andrew were amalgamated in 1923 into the present single corporate body known as the Kingston and Saint Andrew Corporation |
Age structure | 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.) |
0-14 years: 32.5% (male 459,968/female 444,963)
15-64 years: 60.1% (male 822,486/female 848,310) 65 years and over: 7.4% (male 91,856/female 112,549) (2007 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, corn, vegetables, fruit, tea; pigs, poultry, beef, milk; fish | sugarcane, bananas, coffee, citrus, yams, ackees, vegetables; poultry, goats, milk; crustaceans, mollusks |
Airports | 42 (2006) | 34 (2007) |
Airports - with paved runways | 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) |
total: 11
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 5 (2007) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 4
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 3 (2006) |
total: 23
914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 21 (2007) |
Area | total: 35,980 sq km
land: 32,260 sq km water: 3,720 sq km note: includes the Pescadores, Matsu, and Quemoy |
total: 10,991 sq km
land: 10,831 sq km water: 160 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Maryland and Delaware combined | slightly smaller than Connecticut |
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. | The island - discovered by Christopher COLUMBUS in 1494 - was settled by the Spanish early in the 16th century. The native Taino Indians, who had inhabited Jamaica for centuries, were gradually exterminated and replaced by African slaves. England seized the island in 1655 and established a plantation economy based on sugar, cocoa, and coffee. The abolition of slavery in 1834 freed a quarter million slaves, many of whom became small farmers. Jamaica gradually obtained increasing independence from Britain, and in 1958 it joined other British Caribbean colonies in forming the Federation of the West Indies. Jamaica gained full independence when it withdrew from the Federation in 1962. Deteriorating economic conditions during the 1970s led to recurrent violence as rival gangs affiliated with the major political parties evolved into powerful organized crime networks involved in international drug smuggling and money laundering. Violent crime, drug trafficking, and poverty pose significant challenges to the government today. Nonetheless, many rural and resort areas remain relatively safe and contribute substantially to the economy. |
Birth rate | 12.56 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 20.44 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $41.67 billion
expenditures: $50.26 billion; including capital expenditures of $14.4 billion (2005 est.) |
revenues: $3.441 billion
expenditures: $3.905 billion (2007 est.) |
Capital | name: Taipei
geographic coordinates: 25 03 N, 121 30 E time difference: UTC+8 (13 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
name: Kingston
geographic coordinates: 18 00 N, 76 48 W time difference: UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical; marine; rainy season during southwest monsoon (June to August); cloudiness is persistent and extensive all year | tropical; hot, humid; temperate interior |
Coastline | 1,566.3 km | 1,022 km |
Constitution | 25 December 1946; amended in 1992, 1994, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2005 | 6 August 1962 |
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: none
conventional short form: Jamaica |
Death rate | 6.48 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 6.59 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Debt - external | $87.5 billion (2005 est.) | $7.138 billion (31 December 2007 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 Brenda LaGrange JOHNSON
embassy: 142 Old Hope Road, Kingston 6 mailing address: P.O. Box 541, Kingston 5 telephone: [1] (876) 702-6000 FAX: [1] (876) 702-6348 |
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 Gordon SHIRLEY
chancery: 1520 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: [1] (202) 452-0660 FAX: [1] (202) 452-0081 consulate(s) general: Miami, 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 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 | none |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $35.74 million (2005) |
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 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. | The Jamaican economy is heavily dependent on services, which now account for more than 60% of GDP. The country continues to derive most of its foreign exchange from tourism, remittances, and bauxite/alumina. Remittances account for nearly 20% of GDP and are equivalent to tourism revenues. Jamaica's economy, already saddled with a record of sluggish growth, will suffer an economic setback from damages caused by Hurricane Dean in August 2007. The economy faces serious long-term problems: high but declining interest rates, increased foreign competition, exchange rate instability, a sizable merchandise trade deficit, large-scale unemployment and underemployment, and a debt-to-GDP ratio of 135%. Jamaica's onerous debt burden - the fourth highest per capita - is the result of government bailouts to ailing sectors of the economy, most notably the financial sector in the mid-to-late 1990s. Inflation also has declined, standing at about 7% at the end of 2007. High unemployment exacerbates the serious crime problem, including gang violence that is fueled by the drug trade. The GOLDING administration faces the difficult prospect of having to achieve fiscal discipline in order to maintain debt payments while simultaneously attacking a serious and growing crime problem that is hampering economic growth. |
Electricity - consumption | 206.1 billion kWh (2004) | 6.131 billion kWh (2005) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2004) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2004) | 0 kWh (2005) |
Electricity - production | 218.3 billion kWh (2004) | 6.985 billion kWh (2005) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Yu Shan 3,952 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Blue Mountain Peak 2,256 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 | heavy rates of deforestation; coastal waters polluted by industrial waste, sewage, and oil spills; damage to coral reefs; air pollution in Kingston results from vehicle emissions |
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: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Taiwanese (including Hakka) 84%, mainland Chinese 14%, aborigine 2% | black 91.2%, mixed 6.2%, other or unknown 2.6% (2001 census) |
Exchange rates | new Taiwan dollars per US dollar - 31.71 (2005), 34.418 (2004), 34.575 (2003), 33.8 (2002), 33.09 (2001) | Jamaican dollars per US dollar - 69.034 (2007), 65.768 (2006), 62.51 (2005), 61.197 (2004), 57.741 (2003) |
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) 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% |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor General Kenneth O. HALL (since 15 February 2006)
head of government: Prime Minister Bruce GOLDING (since 11 September 2007) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition in the House of Representatives is appointed prime minister by the governor general; the deputy prime minister is recommended by the prime minister |
Exports | NA bbl/day | 1,531 bbl/day (2004) |
Exports - commodities | computer products and electrical equipment, metals, textiles, plastics and rubber products, chemicals (2002) | alumina, bauxite, sugar, bananas, rum, coffee, yams, beverages, chemicals, wearing apparel, mineral fuels |
Exports - partners | China 21.6%, US 16.22%, Hong Kong 15.1%, Japan 7.7% (2005) | US 30.2%, Canada 15.6%, China 15.2%, UK 10.3%, Netherlands 7%, Norway 4.6% (2006) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June (up to FY98/99); 1 July 1999 - 31 December 2000 for FY00; calendar year (after FY00) | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | red with a dark blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner bearing a white sun with 12 triangular rays | diagonal yellow cross divides the flag into four triangles - green (top and bottom) and black (hoist side and outer side) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 1.8%
industry: 25.9% services: 72.3% (2005 est.) |
agriculture: 5%
industry: 34% services: 61% (2007 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4% (2005 est.) | 1.5% (2007 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 23 30 N, 121 00 E | 18 15 N, 77 30 W |
Geography - note | strategic location adjacent to both the Taiwan Strait and the Luzon Strait | strategic location between Cayman Trench and Jamaica Channel, the main sea lanes for the Panama Canal |
Heliports | 3 (2006) | - |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 6.7%
highest 10%: 41.1% (2002 est.) |
lowest 10%: 2.1%
highest 10%: 35.8% (2004) |
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 | transshipment point for cocaine from South America to North America and Europe; illicit cultivation and consumption of cannabis; government has an active manual cannabis eradication program; corruption is a major concern; substantial money-laundering activity; Colombian narcotics traffickers favor Jamaica for illicit financial transactions |
Imports | NA bbl/day | 71,420 bbl/day (2004) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and electrical equipment 44.5%, minerals, precision instruments (2002) | food and other consumer goods, industrial supplies, fuel, parts and accessories of capital goods, machinery and transport equipment, construction materials |
Imports - partners | Japan 25.3%, US 11.6%, China 11%, South Korea 7.3%, Saudi Arabia 4.1% (2005) | US 39.3%, Trinidad and Tobago 13.6%, Venezuela 9.5% (2006) |
Independence | - | 6 August 1962 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4.1% (2005 est.) | 2% (2007 est.) |
Industries | electronics, petroleum refining, armaments, chemicals, textiles, iron and steel, machinery, cement, food processing, vehicles, consumer products, pharmaceuticals | tourism, bauxite/alumina, agro processing, light manufactures, rum, cement, metal, paper, chemical products, telecommunications |
Infant mortality rate | 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.) |
total: 15.73 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 16.4 deaths/1,000 live births female: 15.01 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.3% (2005 est.) | 7.1% (2007 est.) |
International organization participation | 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 |
ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, FAO, G-15, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAES, MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
Irrigated land | NA | 250 sq km (2002) |
Judicial branch | Judicial Yuan (justices appointed by the president with consent of the Legislative Yuan) | Supreme Court (judges appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister); Court of Appeal |
Labor force | 10.6 million (2005 est.) | 1.255 million (2007 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 6%
industry: 35.8% services: 58.2% (2005 est.) |
agriculture: 17%
industry: 19% services: 64% (2006) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 0 km |
Land use | arable land: 24%
permanent crops: 1% other: 75% (2001) |
arable land: 15.83%
permanent crops: 10.01% other: 74.16% (2005) |
Languages | Mandarin Chinese (official), Taiwanese (Min), Hakka dialects | English, English patois |
Legal system | based on civil law system | based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | 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) |
bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (a 21-member body appointed by the governor general on the recommendations of the prime minister and the leader of the opposition; ruling party is allocated 13 seats, and the opposition is allocated 8 seats) and the House of Representatives (60 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 3 September 2007 (next to be held no later than October 2012) election results: percent of vote by party - JLP 50.1%, PNP 49.8%; seats by party - JLP 33, PNP 27 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 77.43 years
male: 74.67 years female: 80.47 years (2006 est.) |
total population: 73.12 years
male: 71.43 years female: 74.9 years (2007 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 96.1% male: NA% female: NA% (2003) |
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 87.9% male: 84.1% female: 91.6% (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 | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, south of Cuba |
Map references | Southeast Asia | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
measured from claimed archipelagic straight baselines
territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to edge of the continental margin |
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) |
total: 13 ships (1000 GRT or over) 161,700 GRT/241,663 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 6, cargo 2, carrier 1, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 3 foreign-owned: 12 (Denmark 1, Germany 1, Greece 8, Latvia 2) registered in other countries: 1 (Panama 1) (2007) |
Military branches | Army, Navy (includes Marine Corps), Air Force, Coast Guard Administration, Armed Forces Reserve Command, Combined Service Forces Command, Armed Forces Police Command | Jamaica Defense Force: Ground Forces, Coast Guard, Air Wing (2007) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $7.93 billion (2005 est.) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.4% (2005 est.) | 0.6% (2006 est.) |
National holiday | Republic Day (Anniversary of the Chinese Revolution), 10 October (1911) | Independence Day, 6 August (1962) |
Nationality | noun: Taiwan (singular and plural)
note: example - he or she is from Taiwan; they are from Taiwan adjective: Taiwan |
noun: Jamaican(s)
adjective: Jamaican |
Natural hazards | earthquakes and typhoons | hurricanes (especially July to November) |
Natural resources | small deposits of coal, natural gas, limestone, marble, and asbestos | bauxite, gypsum, limestone |
Net migration rate | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | -6.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
Pipelines | condensate 25 km; gas 661 km (2006) | - |
Political parties and leaders | 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 | Jamaica Labor Party or JLP [Bruce GOLDING]; People's National Party or PNP [Portia SIMPSON-MILLER]; National Democratic Movement or NDM [Michael WILLIAMS] |
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 |
New Beginnings Movement or NBM; Rastafarians (black religious/racial cultists, pan-Africanists) |
Population | 23,036,087 (July 2006 est.) | 2,780,132 (July 2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 0.9% (2005) | 14.8% (2003 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.61% (2006 est.) | 0.777% (2007 est.) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 218, FM 333, shortwave 50 (1999) | AM 10, FM 13, shortwave 0 (1998) |
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 | mixture of Buddhist, Confucian, and Taoist 93%, Christian 4.5%, other 2.5% | Protestant 62.5% (Seventh-Day Adventist 10.8%, Pentecostal 9.5%, Other Church of God 8.3%, Baptist 7.2%, New Testament Church of God 6.3%, Church of God in Jamaica 4.8%, Church of God of Prophecy 4.3%, Anglican 3.6%, other Christian 7.7%), Roman Catholic 2.6%, other or unspecified 14.2%, none 20.9%, (2001 census) |
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: 0.99 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.034 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.816 male(s)/female total population: 0.978 male(s)/female (2007 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: fully automatic domestic telephone network
domestic: the 1999 agreement to open the market for telecommunications services resulted in rapid growth in mobile-cellular telephone usage; mobile-cellular teledensity now exceeds 100 per 100 persons; the number of fixed-lines in use has been declining international: country code - 1-876; the Fibralink submarine cable network provides enhanced delivery of business and broadband traffic and is linked to the Americas Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1) submarine cable in the Dominican Republic; the link to ARCOS-1 provides seamless connectivity to US, parts of the Caribbean, Central America, and South America; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 13.615 million (2005) | 319,000 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 22.17 million (2005) | 2.804 million (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 29 (plus two repeaters) (1997) | 7 (1997) |
Terrain | eastern two-thirds mostly rugged mountains; flat to gently rolling plains in west | mostly mountains, with narrow, discontinuous coastal plain |
Total fertility rate | 1.57 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 2.36 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 4.1% (2005 est.) | 10.2% (2007 est.) |