Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 86%
male: 93%
female: 79% (1980)
note: literacy for the total population has reportedly increased to
94% (1998)
Government Taiwan
Country name: conventional long form: none conventional short form: Taiwan local short form: T'ai-wan local long form: none former: Formosa
Government type:
multiparty democratic regime headed by popularly-elected president
and unicameral legislature
Capital:
Taipei
Administrative divisions:
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); Taiwan is further subdivided into 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
National holiday:
Republic Day (Anniversary of the Chinese Revolution), 10 October
(1911)
Constitution:
1 January 1947, amended in 1992, 1994, 1997, and 1999
Legal system:
based on civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction,
with reservations
Suffrage:
20 years of age; universal