TaiwanBy Graham Floyd

Statistics• Taiwan has a population of 22,191,087 people

• Average life expectancy is 76.35 years

• People are allowed to vote at the age of 20

• The population of Taiwan is divided in the following way:

• 22% of people are 14 or younger

• 70% of people are 15 - 64 years old

• 8% of people are 65 or older

• Approximately 7.06 infants out of 1000 die at birth

• Taiwan has a literacy rate of 94%

Statistics• Taiwan has a poverty rate of only 1%

• In Taiwan there are a total of about 12 million phones, and about 10.2 million cellular phones

• Taiwan has major drug problems, including the overuse of heroin and methamphetamines

• One Taiwan national holiday is the Anniversary of the Chinese Revolution, celebrated on October 10th

Geography• Taiwan’s total area is 36,000 square kilometers (about 13,900 square miles)

• The Chungyang Range of mountains covers half of the total land area. It’s elevation is 13,114 feet

• All rivers in Taiwan start in the mountains. Taiwan’s longest river runs 116 miles

• 1/4 of Taiwan’s land area is suitable for cultivation

• Taiwan’s climate is tropical/suptropical, with an average of 160 inches of annual rainfall

• Taiwan suffers from bad pollution problems

History• Taiwan has been inhabited as long as 10,000 years

• After World War II, Taiwan was returned to the control of China

• In 1950, the United States sent naval forces to defend Taiwan from Chinese communist invasion

• During the 1960’s, Taiwan experienced massive economic growth due to funding from the U.S.

• Taiwan was expelled from the United Nations in 1971

Culture

• Most of Taiwan’s customs are taken from Chinese traditions

• Taiwan has many distinct arts, such as calligraphy, jade carving, and a large movie industry

Economics• Taiwan is very industrial and export a large amount of machinery and electronics. Taiwan exported $120.3 billion worth of goods in 1998

• Taiwan’s work force is 9 million strong

• Tourism in Taiwan averages at about 2.3 million people every year

• Many products are manufactured in Taiwan, including chemicals, metals, and paper products

• Taiwan’s principle crop is rice

• A well-developed road and rail network runs through Taiwan

Government• Taiwan is a Republic

• Taiwan’s current president is Lee Teng-Hui

• Taiwan has a National Assembly, much like our congress, currently with 316 members

• The government is separated into five branches:

• Executive - the highest branch

• Legislative - laws

• Control - law enforcement

• Examination - survey and examination

• Judicial - court system

• Taiwan currently has three political parties

• Kuomintang

• Democratic Progressive Party

• New Party