Macau

overseas territory of Portugal scheduled to revert to China in 1999Independence none (territory of Portugal

Macau as the 1994 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 100 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.

field in that editiontext changed from the edition beforenot in that editionthe open editionEach field below ends in its editions, 1990 to 2025. Point at a year above to follow it down.

CapitalMacau
LocationEastern Asia, 27 km west-southwest of Hong Kong on the southeast coast
1994

Every edition of Macau

Populationas each edition published it
484,557 people July 1994 est. · 441,691 in 1990
Population growth% a year
1.35% 1994 est. · 1.44% in 1993
Median ageyears
Not in this edition 33.1 yrs in 2003
Life expectancyyears at birth
Not in this edition 79.64 yrs in 1993
Fertility ratechildren per woman
1.46 children per woman 1994 est. · 2.2 in 1990
Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births
5.5 deaths per 1,000 live births 1994 est. · 7 in 1990
GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars
$7,300 1992 · $6,700 in 1993
GDP real growth% a year
12% 1992 · 3.1% in 1993

Geography

Eastern Asia, 27 km west-southwest of Hong Kong on the southeast coast | of China bordering the South China Sea

22 fields
Coastline
40km
Maritime claims: not specified
Land boundaries
0.34km
total · China 0.34 km

Location

Eastern Asia, 27 km west-southwest of Hong Kong on the southeast coast of China bordering the South China Sea

Map references

Asia, Oceania, Southeast Asia, Standard Time Zones of the World

total area

16 sq km

land area

16 sq km

comparative area

about 0.1 times the size of Washington, DC

Climate

subtropical; marine with cool winters, warm summers

Terrain

generally flat

arable land

0%

permanent crops

0%

meadows and pastures

0%

forest and woodland

0%

other

100%

current issues

NA

natural hazards

NA

international agreements

party to - Ozone Layer Protection

Note

essentially urban; one causeway and one bridge connect the two islands to the peninsula on mainland

People

21 fields
Population
484,557
(July 1994 est.)growth rate: 1.35% (1994 est.)

Per 1,000 population(1994 est.)

Birth
14.78Death
4.12Net migration
2.83

Ethnic divisions

Chinese 95%Portuguese 3%other 2%

Religions(1981)

Buddhist 45%Roman Catholic 7%Protestant 1%none 45.8%other 1.2% (1981)
Labor force
180,000
(1986)
Literacy
15and over can read and write
age · (1981)

Infant mortality rate

5.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)

total population

79.75 years

male

77.33 years

female

82.3 years (1994 est.)

Total fertility rate

1.46 children born/woman (1994 est.)

noun

Macanese (singular and plural)

adjective

Macau

Languages

Portuguese (official), Cantonese is the language of commerce

total population

90%

male

93%

female

86%

by occupation

NA

Government

Overseas territory of Portugal scheduled to revert to China in 1999

25 fields

conventional long form

none

conventional short form

Macau

local long form

none

local short form

Ilha de Macau

Type

overseas territory of Portugal scheduled to revert to China in 1999

Capital

Macau

Administrative divisions

2 districts (concelhos, singular - concelho); Ilhas, Macau

Independence

none (territory of Portugal; Portugal signed an agreement with China on 13 April 1987 to return Macau to China on 20 December 1999; in the joint declaration, China promises to respect Macau's existing social and economic systems and lifestyle for 50 year after transition)

National holiday

Day of Portugal, 10 June (1580)

Constitution

17 February 1976, Organic Law of Macau; basic law drafted primarily by Beijing awaiting final approval

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

chief of state

President (of Portugal) Mario Alberto SOARES (since 9 March 1986)

head of government

Governor Gen. Vasco Joachim Rocha VIEIRA (since 20 March 1991)

cabinet

Consultative Council; consists of five members appointed by the governor, two nominated by the governor, five members elected for a four-year term (2 represent administrative bodies, 1 represents moral, cultural, and welfare interests, and 2 economic interests), and three statuatory members

Legislative Assembly

  • elections last held on 10 March 1991;
  • results - percent of vote by party NA;
  • seats - (23 total; 8 elected by universal suffrage, 8 by indirect suffrage, and 7 appointed by the governor) number of seats by party NA

Judicial branch

Supreme Court

Political parties and leaders

  • Association to Defend the Interests of Macau;
  • Macau Democratic Center;
  • Group to Study the Development of Macau;
  • Macau Independent Group

Other political or pressure groups

  • wealthy Macanese and Chinese representing local interests, wealthy pro-Communist merchants representing China's interests;
  • in January 1967 the Macau Government acceded to Chinese demands that gave China veto power over administration

Member of

ESCAP (associate), GATT, IMO (associate), INTERPOL (subbureau), WTO (associate)

Diplomatic representation in US

none (Chinese territory under Portuguese administration)

US diplomatic representation

the US has no offices in Macau, and US interests are monitored by the US Consulate General in Hong Kong

Flag

the flag of Portugal is used

Economy

The economy is based largely on tourism (including gambling) and | textile and fireworks manufacturing.

25 fields
Real growth rate
12%
(1992)industrial production growth: growth rate NA%
Unemployment rate
2%
(1992 est.)

Overview

The economy is based largely on tourism (including gambling) and textile and fireworks manufacturing. Efforts to diversify have spawned other small industries - toys, artificial flowers, and electronics. The tourist sector has accounted for roughly 25% of GDP, and the clothing industry has provided about two-thirds of export earnings;

the gambling industry represented well over 40% of GDP in 1992. Macau depends on China for most of its food, fresh water, and energy imports. Japan and Hong Kong are the main suppliers of raw materials and capital goods.

National product

GDP - exchange rate conversion - $3.5 billion (1992 est.)

revenues

$305 million

expenditures

$298 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1989 est.)

Exports

$1.8 billion (1992 est.)

commodities

textiles, clothing, toys

partners

US 35%, Hong Kong 12.5%, Germany 12%, China 9.9%, France 8% (1992 est.)

Imports

$2 billion (1992 est.)

commodities

raw materials, foodstuffs, capital goods

partners

Hong Kong 33%, China 20%, Japan 18% (1992 est.)

External debt

$91 million (1985)

capacity

258,000 kW

production

855 million kWh

consumption per capita

1,806 kWh (1992)

Industries

clothing, textiles, toys, plastic products, furniture, tourism

Agriculture

  • rice, vegetables;
  • food shortages - rice, vegetables, meat;
  • depends mostly on imports for food requirements

Currency

1 pataca (P) = 100 avos

Exchange rates

patacas (P) per US$1 - 8.034 (1991-93), 8.024 (1990), 8.030 (1989); note - linked to the Hong Kong dollar at the rate of 1.03 patacas per Hong Kong dollar

Fiscal year

calendar year

Communications

5 fields

total

42 km

paved

42 km

Ports

Macau

Airports

none usable, 1 under construction; 1 seaplane station

Telecommunications

  • fairly modern communication facilities maintained for domestic and international services;
  • 52,000 telephones;
  • broadcast stations - 4 AM, 3 FM, no TV (TV programs received from Hong Kong);
  • 115,000 radio receivers (est.);
  • international high-frequency radio communication facility;
  • access to international communications carriers provided via Hong Kong and China;
  • 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT earth station

Defense Forces

2 fields

Manpower availability

males age 15-49 139,499; fit for military service 77,887

Note

defense is responsibility of Portugal

Central Intelligence Agency. “Macau.” The World Factbook 1994. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/macau/1994.

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