Elevation extremes:
lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Yu Shan 3,997 m

Natural resources: small deposits of coal, natural gas,
limestone, marble, and asbestos

Land use:
arable land: 24%
permanent crops: 1%
permanent pastures: 5%
forests and woodland: 55%
other: 15%

Irrigated land: NA sq km

Natural hazards: earthquakes and typhoons

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

Environment--international agreements:
party to: none of the selected agreements
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

People

Population: 22,113,250 (July 1999 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 22% (male 2,515,398; female 2,338,506)
15-64 years: 70% (male 7,825,953; female 7,574,836)
65 years and over: 8% (male 989,040; female 869,517) (1999 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.93% (1999 est.)

Birth rate: 14.63 births/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Death rate: 5.32 deaths/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Net migration rate: -0.02 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.08 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.14 male(s)/female
total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (1999 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 6.01 deaths/1,000 live births (1999 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 77.49 years
male: 74.38 years
female: 80.85 years (1999 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.77 children born/woman (1999 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Chinese (singular and plural)
adjective: Chinese

Ethnic groups: Taiwanese (including Hakka) 84%, mainland Chinese
14%, aborigine 2%

Religions: mixture of Buddhist, Confucian, and Taoist 93%,
Christian 4.5%, other 2.5%

Languages: Mandarin Chinese (official), Taiwanese (Min), Hakka
dialects

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 94% (1998 est.)
male: 93% (1980 est.)
female: 79% (1980 est.)

Government

Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Taiwan
local long form: none
local short form: T'ai-wan

Data code: TW

Government type: multiparty democratic regime headed by popularly
elected president

Capital: Taipei

Administrative division