Taiwan
multiparty democratic regime headed by popularly
Taiwan as the 1997 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 96 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.
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Geography
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
17 fieldsLand useshare of 35,980 sq km
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
Climate
- tropical;
- marine;
- rainy season during southwest monsoon (June to August);
- cloudiness is persistent and extensive all year
Environment - current issues
- water pollution from industrial emissions, raw sewage;
- air pollution;
- contamination of drinking water supplies;
- trade in endangered species;
- low-level radioactive waste disposal
Environment - international agreements
- party to:
- none of the selected agreements
- signed, but not ratified:
- Marine Life Conservation
People
15 fieldsPer 1,000 population(1997 est.)
Male · female
Age structure
0-14 years : 23% (male 2,576,022; female 2,399,926)
- 15-64 years:
- 69% (male 7,630,512; female 7,363,155)
- 65 years and over:
- 8% (male 937,206; female 792,955) (July 1997 est.)
Sex ratio
- at birth :
- 1.08 male(s)/female
- under 15 years:
- 1.07 male(s)/female
- 15-64 years:
- 1.04 male(s)/female
- 65 years and over:
- 1.18 male(s)/female
- total population:
- 1.06 male(s)/female (1997 est.)
Government
Multiparty democratic regime headed by popularly; Premier (President of the Executive Yuan) LIEN Chan (since 23 February 1993) and Vice Premier (Vice President of the Executive Yuan) HSU Li-teh (since 23 February 1993)
18 fieldsPresidential electionpercent of vote
Legislative Yuan, 334 seatsseats by party
Percent of vote
Country name
- conventional long form:
- none
- conventional short form:
- Taiwan
- local long form:
- none
- local short form:
- T'ai-wan
Administrative divisions
- since in the past the authorities claimed to be the government of all China, the central administrative divisions include the provinces of Fu-chien (some 20 offshore islands of Fujian Province including Quemoy and Matsu) and Taiwan (the island of Taiwan and the Pescadores islands);
- note - the more commonly referenced administrative divisions are those of Taiwan Province - 16 counties (hsien, singular and plural), 5 municipalities* (shih, singular and plural), and 2 special municipalities** (chuan-shih, singular and plural);
- Chang-hua, Chia-i, Chia-i*, Chi-lung*, Hsin-chu, Hsin-chu*, Hua-lien, I-lan, Kao-hsiung, Kao-hsiung**, Miao-li, Nan-t'ou, P'eng-hu, P'ing-tung, T'ai-chung, T'ai-chung*, T'ai-nan, T'ai-nan*, T'ai-pei, T'ai-pei**, T'ai-tung, T'ao-yuan, and Yun-lin;
- the provincial capital is at Chung-hsing-hsin-ts'un
note: Taiwan uses the Wade-Giles system for romanization
Executive branch
- chief of state:
- President LI Teng-hui (succeeded to the presidency following the death of President CHIANG Ching-kuo 13 January 1988, elected by the National Assembly 21 March 1990, elected by popular vote in the first-ever direct elections for president 23 March 1996);
- Vice President LIEN Chan (since 20 May 1996);
- note - LIEN Chan serves as both vice president and premier
- head of government:
- Premier (President of the Executive Yuan) LIEN Chan (since 23 February 1993) and Vice Premier (Vice President of the Executive Yuan) HSU Li-teh (since 23 February 1993);
- note - LIEN Chan serves as both vice president and premier
- 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 23 March 1996 (next to be held NA 2000);
- premier appointed by the president;
- vice premiers appointed by the president on the recommendation of the premier
- election results :
- LI Teng-hui elected president; percent of vote - LI Teng-hui 54%, PENG Ming-min 21%, LIN Yang-kang 15%, and CHEN Li-an 10%
Legislative branch
unicameral Legislative Yuan (164 seats - 128 elected by popular vote, 36 indirectly elected on the basis of proportional representation; members serve three-year terms; note - national conference agreed to change the term to four years, pending ratification by the National Assembly) and unicameral National Assembly (334 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
- elections :
- Legislative Yuan - last held 2 December 1995 (next to be held NA December 1998); National Assembly - last held 23 March 1996 (next to be held NA 2000)
- election results:
- Legislative Yuan - percent of vote by party - KMT 46%, DPP 33%, CNP 13%, independents 8%;
- seats by party - KMT 85, DPP 54, CNP 21, independents 4;
- note - since the election, there has been a change in the distribution of seats, the new distribution is as follows - KMT 83, DPP 54, CNP 21, independents 6;
- National Assembly - percent of vote by party - KMT 55%, DPP 30%, CNP 14%, other 1%;
- seats by party - KMT 183, DPP 99, CNP 46, other 6
Judicial branch
Judicial Yuan, justices appointed by the president with the consent of the National Assembly
Political parties and leaders
- Kuomintang (KMT, Nationalist Party), LI Teng-hui, chairman;
- Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), HSU Hsin-Liang, chairman;
- Chinese New Party (CNP), CHEN Kuei-Miao;
- Labor Party (LP), leader NA;
- Taiwan Independence Party (TAIP), leader NA
Political pressure groups and leaders
Taiwan independence movement, various 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 the opposition Democratic Progressive Party in Taiwan's legislature have opened public debate on the island's national identity;
advocates of Taiwan independence, including within the DPP, oppose the ruling party's traditional stand that the island will eventually reunify 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
Diplomatic representation in the US
none; unofficial commercial and cultural relations with the people of the US are maintained through a private instrumentality, the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office (TECRO) with headquarters in Taipei and field offices in Washington and 12 other US cities
Diplomatic representation from the US
none; unofficial commercial and cultural relations with the people of Taiwan are maintained through a private institution, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT), which has offices in Taipei at #7 Lane 134, Hsin Yi Road, Section 3, telephone [886] (2) 709-2000, FAX [886] (2) 702-7675, and in Kao-hsiung at #2 Chung Cheng 3d Road, telephone [886] (7) 224-0154 through 0157, FAX [886] (7) 223-8237, and the American Trade Center at Room 3207 International Trade Building, Taipei World Trade Center, 333 Keelung Road Section 1, Taipei 10548, telephone [886] (2) 720-1550, FAX [886] 757-7162
Flag description
red with a dark blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner bearing a white sun with 12 triangular rays
Economy
Taiwan has a dynamic capitalist economy with | considerable guidance of investment and foreign trade by government | officials and partial government ownership of some large banks and | industrial firms.
22 fieldsGDP - composition by sector(1996)
Economy - overview
Taiwan has a dynamic capitalist economy with considerable guidance of investment and foreign trade by government officials and partial government ownership of some large banks and industrial firms. Real growth in GDP has averaged about 9% a year during the past three decades. Export growth has been even faster and has provided the impetus for industrialization.
Inflation and unemployment are low. Agriculture contributes less than 4% to GDP, down from 35% in 1952. Traditional labor-intensive industries are steadily being moved off-shore and replaced with more capital- and technology-intensive industries. Taiwan has become a major investor in China, Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Vietnam. The tightening of labor markets has led to an influx of foreign workers, both legal and illegal.
Industries
electronics, textiles, chemicals, clothing, food processing, plywood, sugar milling, cement, shipbuilding, petroleum refining
Agriculture - products
- rice, wheat, corn, soybeans, vegetables, fruit, tea;
- pigs, poultry, beef, milk;
- fish catch increasing, reached 1.4 million metric tons in 1988
Exports
- total value:
- $116 billion (f.o.b., 1996)
- commodities:
- machinery and electrical equipment 46.3%, textile products 13.5%, basic metals and articles 8.8%, chemicals 6.7% (1996 est.)
- partners :
- US 27.6%, Hong Kong 21.7%, EU countries 15.2%, Japan 10.5% (1994 est.)
Imports
- total value:
- $102.4 billion (c.i.f., 1996)
- commodities:
- machinery and electrical equipment 35.5%, chemicals 10.9%, basic metals and articles 10.3%, minerals 9.2% (1996 est.)
- partners:
- Japan 30.1%, US 21.7%, EU countries 17.6% (1993 est.)
Exchange rates
New Taiwan dollars per US$1 - 27.5 (1996), 27.4 (1995), 26.2 (1994), 26.6 (1993), 25.4 (1992)
Communications
6 fieldsTelephone system
- domestic:
- extensive microwave radio relay trunk system on east and west coasts
- international :
- 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
Transportation
9 fieldsAirports by runway lengthpaved only
Railways
- total :
- 4,600 km (498 km electrified); note - 1,108 km belongs to the Taiwan Railway Administration and the remaining 3,492 km is dedicated to industrial use
- narrow gauge:
- 4,600 km 1.067-m
Merchant marine
- total:
- 200 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,872,739 GRT/8,965,523 DWT
- ships by type :
- bulk 50, cargo 29, combination bulk 3, combination ore/oil 1, container 85, oil tanker 19, refrigerated cargo 11, roll-on/roll-off cargo 2 (1996 est.)
Military
Army, Navy (includes Marines), Air Force, Coastal | Patrol and Defense Command, Armed Forces Reserve Command, Combined | Service Forces
7 fieldsMilitary branches
Army, Navy (includes Marines), Air Force, Coastal Patrol and Defense Command, Armed Forces Reserve Command, Combined Service Forces
Transnational Issues
2 fieldsDisputes - international
- involved in complex dispute over the Spratly Islands with China, Malaysia, Philippines, Vietnam, and possibly Brunei;
- Paracel Islands occupied by China, but claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan;
- Japanese-administered Senkaku-shoto (Senkaku Islands/Diaoyu Tai) claimed by China and Taiwan
Illicit drugs
considered an important heroin transit point; major problem with domestic consumption of methamphetamines and heroin
Cite this entry
Central Intelligence Agency. “Taiwan.” The World Factbook 1997. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/taiwan/1997.