China (People's Republic of China)

http://www.humantruth.info/china.html

By Vexen Crabtree 2013

#china #confucianism #environmentalism #internationalism #japan #taoism

China People's Republic of China
Status	Independent State
Social and Moral Index	67th best
Capital	Beijing
Land Area	9 327 490km²₁
Location	Asia
Population	1.4b₂
Life Expectancy	78.21yrs (2017)₃
GNI	$17 504 (2017)₄
ISO3166-1 Codes	CN, CHN, 156₅
Internet Domain	.cn₆
Currency	Yuan Renminbi (CNY)₇
Telephone	+86₈

1. Overview

#china

“For centuries China stood as a leading civilization, outpacing the rest of the world in the arts and sciences, but in the 19th and early 20th centuries, the country was beset by civil unrest, major famines, military defeats, and foreign occupation. After World War II, the Communists under MAO Zedong established an autocratic socialist system that, while ensuring China's sovereignty, imposed strict controls over everyday life and cost the lives of tens of millions of people. After 1978, MAO's successor DENG Xiaoping and other leaders focused on market-oriented economic development and by 2000 output had quadrupled. For much of the population, living standards have improved dramatically and the room for personal choice has expanded, yet political controls remain tight. Since the early 1990s, China has increased its global outreach and participation in international organizations.”
CIA's The World Factbook (2013)₉

“Antique yet up-to-the-minute, outwardly urban but quintessentially rural, conservative yet path-breaking, space-age but old-fashioned, China is a land of mesmerising contradictions.
China is modernising at a head-spinning pace, but slick skyscrapers and Lamborghini showrooms are little more than dazzling baubles. ... After three decades of full-throttle development and socialist iconoclasm, you won´t find history at every turn, but travel selectively in China and rich seams of antiquity pop into view amid tumble-down chunks of the Great Wall, temple-topped mountains, quaint villages and water towns.
Culinary exploration is also an enticing aspect of Middle Kingdom travel: wolf down Peking duck, size up a sizzling lamb kebab in Kaifeng or gobble down Lánzhōu noodles on the Silk Road. And don´t forget about what´s cooking along China´s frontier lands - always an excellent reason to get off the beaten path.
And China is vast. Off-the-scale massive. You simply have to get outside: island-hop in Hong Kong, gaze over the epic grasslands of Inner Mongolia or squint up at the mind-blowing peaks of the Himalayas.”
"The World" by Lonely Planet (2014)₁₀

2. China National and Social Development

#economics #human_development #wealth

UN HDI (2021)₁₁
Pos.		Higher is better Value₁₁
1	Switzerland	0.962
2	Norway	0.961
3	Iceland	0.959
4	Hong Kong	0.952
5	Australia	0.951
	...
76	Iran	0.774
77	Ukraine	0.773
78	Macedonia	0.770
79	China	0.768
80	Moldova	0.767
81	Dominican Rep.	0.767
	Asia Avg	0.75
	World Avg	0.72
q=191.

Gross National Income Per-Capita (2021)₁₁
Pos.		Higher is better PPP $₁₁
1	Liechtenstein	$146 830
2	Singapore	$90 919
3	Qatar	$87 134
4	Luxembourg	$84 649
5	Ireland	$76 169
	...
69	Dominican Rep.	$17 990
70	Mexico	$17 896
71	Nauru	$17 730
72	China	$17 504
73	Thailand	$17 030
74	Antigua & Barbuda	$16 792
	Asia Avg	$22 215
	World Avg	$20 136
q=193.

Social & Moral Development Index₁₂_,₁₃
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank₁₂_,₁₃
1	Taiwan	28.6
2	Norway	29.4
3	Denmark	31.2
4	Sweden	32.2
5	Finland	32.6
	...
64	S. Africa	76.8
65	Montenegro	77.2
66	Thailand	77.2
67	China	77.5
68	Maldives	77.6
69	Macedonia	77.9
	Asia Avg	87.1
	World Avg	86.1
q=195.

The United Nations produces an annual Human Development Report which includes the Human Development Index. The factors taken into account include life expectancy, education and schooling and Gross National Income (GNI) amongst many others..

The Social and Moral Development Index concentrates on moral issues and human rights, violence, public health, equality, tolerance, freedom and effectiveness in climate change mitigation and environmentalism, and on some technological issues. A country scores higher for achieving well in those areas, and for sustaining that achievement in the long term. Those countries towards the top of this index can truly said to be setting good examples and leading humankind onwards into a bright, humane, and free future. See: Which are the Best Countries in the World? The Social and Moral Development Index.

3. China's Demographics and Migration

#birth_control #demographics #health #immigration #life_expectancy #longevity #migration #overpopulation #population

Population:

China's population is predicted to fall to 1 393 076 000 by 2030. This country has a fertility rate of 1.57. The fertility rate is, in simple terms, the average amount of children that each woman has. The higher the figure, the quicker the population is growing, although, to calculate the rate you also need to take into account morbidity, i.e., the rate at which people die. If people live healthy and long lives and morbidity is low, then, 2.0 approximates to the replacement rate, which would keep the population stable. If all countries had such a fertility rate, population growth would end. The actual replacement rate in most developed countries is around 2.1.

Population (2018)₂
Pos.		Population₂
1	China	1.4b
2	India	1.4b
3	USA	327.1m
4	Indonesia	267.7m
5	Pakistan	212.2m
6	Brazil	209.5m
7	Nigeria	195.9m
8	Bangladesh	161.4m
9	Russia	145.7m
10	Japan	127.2m
11	Mexico	126.2m
12	Ethiopia	109.2m
	World Avg	39.0m
q=195.

Life Expectancy (2021)₁₁
Pos.		Higher is better Years₁₁
1	Monaco	85.9
2	Hong Kong	85.5
3	Japan	84.8
4	Australia	84.5
5	Switzerland	84.0
	...
39	UAE	78.7
40	Kuwait	78.7
41	Antigua & Barbuda	78.5
42	China	78.2
43	Czechia	77.7
44	Croatia	77.6
	World Avg	71.28
q=195.

Fertility Rate (2013)₁₄
Pos.		2.0 is best₁₄
1	N. Korea	2.00
2	Brunei	1.99
3	St Vincent & Grenadines	2.01
4	France	1.99
5	Turkey	2.04
	...
62	Panama	2.42
63	Peru	2.43
64	Barbados	1.57
65	China	1.57
66	Serbia	1.56
67	Libya	2.44
	World Avg	2.81
q=180.

Old-Age Dependency Ratio (2016)₁₅
Pos.		Lower is better Per 100₁₅
1	Uganda	04.3
2	Mali	04.5
3	Chad	04.7
4	Burkina Faso	04.7
5	Sierra Leone	04.8
	...
127	Israel	22.9
128	Sri Lanka	23.7
129	Moldova	24.7
130	China	25.3
131	Mauritius	25.9
132	Uruguay	26.8
	World Avg	18.3
q=185.

Migration:

Immigrants (2017)₁₆
Pos.		%₁₆
1	UAE	88.4%
2	Kuwait	75.5%
3	Qatar	65.2%
4	Liechtenstein	65.1%
5	Monaco	54.9%
	...
190	Myanmar (Burma)	0.1%
191	Madagascar	0.1%
192	Indonesia	0.1%
193	Cuba	0.1%
194	Vietnam	0.1%
195	China	0.1%
	World Avg	9.4%
q=195.

Emigrants (2010)₁₇
Pos.		%₁₇
1	Dominica	104.8%
2	Palestine	68.4%
3	Samoa	67.3%
4	Grenada	65.5%
5	St Kitts & Nevis	61.1%
	...
185	Qatar	0.7%
186	Nigeria	0.6%
187	Maldives	0.6%
188	China	0.6%
189	Japan	0.6%
190	Oman	0.5%
	World Avg	11.5%
q=192.

4. Human Rights, Equality & Tolerance

#australia #china #equality #freedom #gender_equality #germany #human_rights #morals #politics #prejudice #russia #syria #tolerance #USA

Human Rights, Equality & Tolerance (2020)₁₈_,₁₉
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank₁₈_,₁₉
1	Sweden	9.2
2	Norway	14.7
3	Denmark	14.7
4	Netherlands	15.8
5	New Zealand	17.5
	...
96	S. Sudan	90.5
97	Tunisia	91.8
98	Vatican City	92.0
99	China	92.0
100	Kenya	92.6
101	Vietnam	92.8
	Asia Avg	99.8
	World Avg	87.7
q=199.

The concept of Human Rights has not been accepted by the Chinese government. Although outright draconian abuse only exists in terms of censorship and political limitations, there are many areas where human rights are more generically denied. Since President Xi Jinping took power in 2012, a "broad and sustained offensive on human rights" has ensued, according to Human Rights Watch's 2017 report₂₀. Forced confessions and televised sham trials were used to harass and silence human rights supporters and "the government also tried to eliminate the country's few independent human rights news websites by jailing their founders"₂₀. The government remains "hostile to women's rights activism" even though "women and girls in China continue to confront sexual abuse and harassment, employment discrimination, and domestic violence"₂₁. China's censorship of Internet access is already one of the most draconian worldwide and these controls were made even stronger in 2017₂₀.

China does worse than average in commentary in Human Rights Watch reports₂₂, LGBT equality₂₃, its nominal commitment to Human Rights₂₄ and in freethought₂₅. And finally, it falls into the worst-performing 20 for supporting personal, civil & economic freedoms₂₆ and in supporting press freedom₂₇.

"Foreign governments did little in 2017 to push back against China's worsening rights record at home and abroad"₂₀. China and Russia both worked together to prevent and delay investigations of widespread human rights abuses in Syria by the International Criminal Court₂₈. Australia and Germany both applied some pressure, and although the USA followed suit, their efforts were undermined by their own President Trump's applause of President Xi.

For tables, charts and commentary, see:

Human Rights and Freedom in China

5. China's Health

#alcohol #birth_control #China #demographics #health #life_expectancy #longevity #obesity #overpopulation #parenting #population #smoking #vaccines

Compared to Asia (2020)₂₉_,₃₀
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank₂₉_,₃₀
1	Hong Kong	18.3
2	Maldives	41.0
3	Singapore	42.6
4	Japan	51.0
5	S. Korea	51.3
6	Sri Lanka	52.9
7	Bhutan	55.1
8	China	60.4
9	Brunei	62.6
10	Malaysia	62.8
11	Oman	62.9
12	N. Korea	65.0
13	Thailand	65.3
	Asia Avg	80.1
q=50.

Health (2020)₂₉_,₃₀
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank₂₉_,₃₀
1	Monaco	13.0
2	Hong Kong	18.3
3	Maldives	41.0
4	Singapore	42.6
5	Japan	51.0
6	S. Korea	51.3
7	Sri Lanka	52.9
8	Bhutan	55.1
9	China	60.4
10	Norway	61.0
11	Brunei	62.6
12	Malaysia	62.8
13	Oman	62.9
	World Avg	93.5
q=196.

The countries with the best overall approach to public health, in terms of both public policy and individual lifestyle choices, are Monaco, Hong Kong and The Maldives₂₉. These countries are worth emulating. And, although often through no fault of the average citizen, the worst countries are The Marshall Islands, S. Sudan and Palau₂₉.

The data sets used to calculate points for each country are its average life expectancy, its alcohol consumption rate, its fertility rate, its smoking rate, its suicide rate, its food aid and health contributions and WHO compliance, the prevalence of overweight adults, its adolescent birth rate and its immunizations take-up. The regions with the best average results per country are Scandinavia, Asia and The Mediterranean₂₉, whereas the worst are Micronesia, Australasia and Africa₂₉.

For more, see:

"Countries With the Healthiest Cultures and Health Policies" by Vexen Crabtree (2020).

Health:

China does relatively well in encouraging good health, compared to many other countries. China does the best for its immunizations take-up₃₁. It does better than average in its adolescent birth rate₃₂, its fertility rate₁₄, its average life expectancy₁₁ and in its food aid and health contributions and WHO compliance₃₃. But, there's bad news too. China does worse than average when it comes to its alcohol consumption rate₃₄. And finally, it falls into the worst-performing 20 in its smoking rate₃₅ (amongst the worst in Asia). The number of overweight adults has increased by 14% during the last 40 years.

Life Expectancy (2021)₁₁
Pos.		Higher is better Years₁₁
1	Monaco	85.9
2	Hong Kong	85.5
3	Japan	84.8
4	Australia	84.5
5	Switzerland	84.0
	...
39	UAE	78.7
40	Kuwait	78.7
41	Antigua & Barbuda	78.5
42	China	78.2
43	Czechia	77.7
44	Croatia	77.6
	Asia Avg	73.48
	World Avg	71.28
q=195.

Alcohol Consumption (2016)₃₄
Pos.		Lower is better Per Capita₃₄
1	Bangladesh	0.0
2	Kuwait	0.0
3	Libya	0.0
4	Mauritania	0.0
5	Somalia	0.0
	...
104	Dominican Rep.	6.9
105	Antigua & Barbuda	7.0
106	Niue	7.0
107	China	7.2
108	Paraguay	7.2
109	Mongolia	7.4
	Asia Avg	3.9
	World Avg	6.2
q=189.

Fertility Rate (2013)₁₄
Pos.		2.0 is best₁₄
1	N. Korea	2.00
2	Brunei	1.99
3	St Vincent & Grenadines	2.01
4	France	1.99
5	Turkey	2.04
	...
62	Panama	2.42
63	Peru	2.43
64	Barbados	1.57
65	China	1.57
66	Serbia	1.56
67	Libya	2.44
	Asia Avg	2.46
	World Avg	2.81
q=180.

Smoking Rates (2014)₃₅
Pos.		Higher is worse₃₅
182	Montenegro	4 125
181	Belarus	3 831
180	Lebanon	3 023
179	Macedonia	2 732
178	Russia	2 690
177	Slovenia	2 637
176	Belgium	2 353
175	Luxembourg	2 284
174	China	2 250
173	Bosnia & Herzegovina	2 233
172	Czechia	2 194
171	Kazakhstan	2 157
	Asia Avg	1 035
	World Avg	819
q=182.

Food Aid, Health Contributions & WHO Compliance (2017)₃₃
Pos.		Lower is better Rank₃₃
1	Sweden	1
2	Ireland	2
3	Denmark	3
4	UK	4
5	Norway	5
	...
45	Mexico	45
46	Malaysia	46
47	Czechia	47
48	China	48
49	Singapore	49
50	Ecuador	50
	Asia Avg	64.4
	World Avg	82.0
q=163.

Overweight Adults (2016)₃₆
Pos.		Lower is better %₃₆
1	Vietnam	18.3
2	India	19.7
3	Bangladesh	20.0
4	Ethiopia	20.9
5	Nepal	21.0
	...
50	Singapore	31.8
51	Gambia	31.9
52	Ghana	32.0
53	China	32.3
54	Mauritius	32.3
55	N. Korea	32.4
	Asia Avg	44.3
	World Avg	49.0
q=191.

Children's Health:

Adolescent Birth Rate (2015)₃₂
Pos.		Lower is better Per 1000₃₂
1	N. Korea	0.5
2	S. Korea	1.6
3	Switzerland	2.9
4	Hong Kong	3.2
5	Slovenia	3.8
	...
19	Maldives	6.7
20	Tunisia	6.8
21	Austria	7.1
22	China	7.3
23	Greece	7.5
24	Oman	8.1
	Asia Avg	29.9
	World Avg	47.9
q=185.

Infant Immunizations 2011-2015 (2015)₃₁
Pos.		Higher is better Avg %₃₁
1	Hungary	99.0
2	China	99.0
3	Uzbekistan	98.9
4	Niue	98.8
5	Mongolia	98.7
6	Czechia	98.7
7	Seychelles	98.6
8	S. Korea	98.6
9	Sri Lanka	98.4
10	St Lucia	98.2
11	Bahrain	98.2
12	Iran	98.1
	Asia Avg	90.5
	World Avg	88.3
q=194.

6. China's Modernity and Learning

#education #english #intelligence #it_security #maths #modernity #politics #religion #religiosity #research #science #secularisation #technology #the_internet

Compared to Asia (2020)₁₉
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank₁₉
1	Taiwan	10.0
2	Japan	21.9
3	S. Korea	24.0
4	Singapore	27.9
5	Israel	32.2
	...
12	UAE	56.0
13	Saudi Arabia	60.4
14	Uzbekistan	61.7
15	China	61.9
16	Kazakhstan	63.3
17	Georgia	65.1
18	Vietnam	67.1
	Asia Avg	79.0
q=51.

Modernity and Learning (2020)₁₉
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank₁₉
1	Finland	8.4
2	Taiwan	10.0
3	Switzerland	15.1
4	Estonia	15.8
5	Denmark	16.0
	...
63	Mexico	59.8
64	Saudi Arabia	60.4
65	Uzbekistan	61.7
66	China	61.9
67	Kazakhstan	63.3
68	Monaco	64.5
69	Georgia	65.1
	World Avg	83.2
q=205.

Modernity and Education:

Research and Development (2016)
Pos.		Higher is better % RDP PPP
1	S. Korea	4.29₃₇
2	Israel	4.11₃₇
3	Japan	3.58₃₇
4	Finland	3.17₃₇
5	Sweden	3.16₃₇
	...
121	Bahrain	0.04₃₈
122	Colombia	0.04₃₈
123	Iraq	0.03₃₉
124	El Salvador	0.03₄₀
125	China	0.03₃₈
126	Lesotho	0.01₃₉
	Asia Avg	0.75
	World Avg	0.84
q=126.

Secondary Education (2018)₄₁
Pos.		Higher is better₄₁
1	Luxembourg	100.0%
2	Estonia	100.0%
3	Austria	100.0%
4	Canada	100.0%
5	Finland	100.0%
	...
61	Italy	79.6%
62	Hong Kong	79.4%
63	Chile	79.3%
64	China	78.6%
65	Belize	78.6%
66	Malta	78.2%
	Asia Avg	66.0%
	World Avg	63.0%
q=169.

Length of Schooling (2021)₄₂
Pos.		Higher is better Years₄₂
1	Australia	21.1
2	New Zealand	20.3
3	Greece	20.0
4	Belgium	19.6
5	Sweden	19.4
	...
78	Moldova	14.4
79	Serbia	14.4
80	Luxembourg	14.4
81	China	14.2
82	Romania	14.2
83	Antigua & Barbuda	14.2
	Asia Avg	13.5
	World Avg	13.5
q=193.

Intellectual Endeavours (2017)₃₃
Pos.		Lower is better Rank₃₃
1	Ukraine	1
2	Czechia	2
3	Hungary	3
4	Denmark	4
5	UK	5
	...
67	India	67
68	Lebanon	68
69	Senegal	69
70	China	70
71	Burundi	71
72	Tunisia	72
	Asia Avg	97.1
	World Avg	82.0
q=163.

Maths, Science & Reading (2015)₄₃
Pos.		Higher is better Score₄₃
1	Singapore	1655
2	Hong Kong	1598
3	Japan	1586
4	Macau	1582
5	Estonia	1573
6	Taiwan	1571
7	Canada	1571
8	Finland	1568
9	S. Korea	1557
10	China	1543₄₄
11	Ireland	1528
12	Slovenia	1528
	Asia Avg	1398
	World Avg	1389
q=70.

Religiosity (2018)₄₅
Pos.		Lower is better %₄₅
1	China	3
2	Estonia	6
3	Czechia	7
4	Switzerland	9
5	Denmark	9
6	Germany	10
7	UK	10
8	Sweden	10
9	Japan	10
10	Finland	10
11	Latvia	11
12	France	11
	Asia Avg	55.8
	World Avg	54.3
q=106.

IQ (2006)₄₆
Pos.		Higher is better₄₆
1	Hong Kong	108
2	Singapore	108
3	S. Korea	106
4	Japan	105
5	Taiwan	105
6	China	105
7	Italy	102
8	Iceland	101
9	Switzerland	101
10	Mongolia	101
11	Netherlands	100
12	Norway	100
	Asia Avg	90.4
	World Avg	85.6
q=138.

Technology and Information:

Internet Users (2016)₄₇
Pos.		Higher is better₄₇
1	Iceland	100%
2	Faroe Islands	99%
3	Norway	98%
4	Bermuda	97%
5	Andorra	97%
	...
91	Serbia	54%
92	Maldives	54%
93	Georgia	53%
94	China	52%
95	Vietnam	52%
96	S. Africa	52%
	Asia Avg	48.7%
	World Avg	48.1%
q=201.

Freedom On The Internet (2012)₄₈
Pos.		Lower is better₄₈
1	Estonia	10
2	USA	12
3	Germany	15
4	Australia	18
5	Hungary	19
	...
42	Myanmar (Burma)	75
43	Uzbekistan	77
44	Syria	83
45	China	85
46	Cuba	86
47	Iran	90
	Asia Avg	56.6
	World Avg	46.7
q=47.

IT Security (2013)₄₉
Pos.		Lower is better₄₉
1	Ireland	0.11
2	Luxembourg	0.11
3	Belize	0.11
4	Hong Kong	0.12
5	Mexico	0.16
	...
69	Rwanda	1.50
70	Tanzania	1.50
71	Maldives	1.57
72	China	1.59
73	Angola	1.61
74	Sri Lanka	1.67
	Asia Avg	1.08
	World Avg	0.98
q=81.

IPv6 Uptake (2017)₅₀
Pos.		Higher is better Ratio₅₀
1	Belgium	55.4
2	Germany	41.8
3	Switzerland	35.1
4	USA	35.0
5	Greece	33.5
	...
56	Egypt	0.4
57	Mexico	0.4
58	Bhutan	0.4
59	China	0.3
60	Iceland	0.3
61	Turkey	0.3
	Asia Avg	2.11
	World Avg	3.82
q=176.

7. National Culture

#charity #corruption #happiness #morals #politics

On the Corruption Index, China scored on average 38.4 over the 2012-2016 period. Over the 10 years since then, it improved by 6.6 points.

World Giving Index (2013-2021)₅₁
Pos.		Lower is better₅₁
1	Myanmar (Burma)	2.7
2	New Zealand	4.0
3	USA	4.7
4	Australia	4.9
5	Indonesia	9.0
	...
154	Armenia	125.0
155	Lithuania	125.6
156	Greece	127.1
157	China	131.4
158	Palestine	136.2
159	Yemen	138.0
	Asia Avg	62.5
	World Avg	67.9
q=160.

Corruption (2022)₅₂
Pos.		Higher is better Points₅₂
1	Denmark	90.0
2	Finland	87.0
3	New Zealand	87.0
4	Norway	84.0
5	Singapore	83.0
	...
62	Malaysia	47.0
63	Armenia	46.0
64	Romania	46.0
65	China	45.0
66	Sao Tome & Principe	45.0
67	Montenegro	45.0
	Asia Avg	39.98
	World Avg	42.98
q=180.

Happiness (2018)₅₃
Pos.		Higher is better₅₃
1	Finland	7.6
2	Norway	7.6
3	Denmark	7.6
4	Iceland	7.5
5	Switzerland	7.5
	...
83	Dominican Rep.	5.3
84	Algeria	5.3
85	Morocco	5.3
86	China	5.2
87	Azerbaijan	5.2
88	Lebanon	5.2
	Asia Avg	5.29
	World Avg	5.38
q=156.

Creativity and Culture (2017)₃₃
Pos.		Lower is better Rank₃₃
1	Belgium	1
2	Netherlands	2
3	Estonia	3
4	Switzerland	4
5	Sweden	5
	...
108	Lesotho	108
109	Georgia	109
110	Kuwait	110
111	China	111
112	Swaziland	112
113	Argentina	113
	Asia Avg	99.0
	World Avg	82.0
q=163.

Open Trading, Aid and Development (2017)₃₃
Pos.		Lower is better Rank₃₃
1	Ireland	1
2	Denmark	2
3	Sweden	3
4	Netherlands	4
5	Switzerland	5
	...
110	Ecuador	110
111	Malawi	111
112	Laos	112
113	China	113
114	S. Africa	114
115	Cape Verde	115
	Asia Avg	86.3
	World Avg	82.0
q=163.

8. Peace Versus Instability

#extremism #human_development #peace #politics #religious_violence #terrorism

Global Peace Index (2021)₅₄
Pos.		Lower is better₅₄
1	Iceland	1.10
2	New Zealand	1.25
3	Denmark	1.26
4	Portugal	1.27
5	Slovenia	1.32
	...
97	Tajikistan	2.10
98	Tunisia	2.11
99	Guinea-Bissau	2.11
100	China	2.11
101	Guyana	2.11
102	Bahrain	2.12
	Asia Avg	2.22
	World Avg	2.08
q=163.

Peacekeeping and Security (2017)₃₃
Pos.		Lower is better Rank₃₃
1	Samoa	1
2	S. Africa	2
3	Tunisia	3
4	Egypt	4
5	Nigeria	5
	...
37	Germany	37
38	Togo	38
39	Argentina	39
40	China	40
41	Canada	41
42	Azerbaijan	42
	Asia Avg	76.0
	World Avg	82.0
q=163.

Refugees and UN Treaties (2017)₃₃
Pos.		Lower is better Rank₃₃
1	Austria	1
2	Germany	2
3	Netherlands	3
4	Sweden	4
5	Malta	5
	...
106	Namibia	106
107	Tunisia	107
108	Cape Verde	108
109	China	109
110	Kazakhstan	110
111	Jordan	111
	Asia Avg	92.2
	World Avg	82.0
q=163.

Impact of Terrorism (2019)₅₅
Pos.		Lower is better Score₅₅
1	Togo	0.00
2	Mongolia	0.00
3	Swaziland	0.00
4	Equatorial Guinea	0.00
5	Cambodia	0.00
	...
106	Greece	4.17
107	Germany	4.25
108	Lebanon	4.40
109	China	4.47
110	S. Africa	4.51
111	Israel	4.53
	Asia Avg	3.60
	World Avg	2.78
q=150.

9. The Natural Environment

#biodiversity #climate_change #deforestation #over-exploitation #the_environment

Forest Area Change 1990-2015 (2015)₅₆
Pos.		Higher is better %₅₆
1	Iceland	+205.6
2	Bahrain	+144.4
3	Uruguay	+131.3
4	Kuwait	+81.2
5	Dominican Rep.	+79.5
	...
13	Bhutan	+34.7
14	Azerbaijan	+34.6
15	Spain	+33.2
16	China	+32.6
17	Montenegro	+32.1
18	Syria	+32.1
	Asia Avg	+07.0
	World Avg	+02.8
q=184.

Environmental Performance (2018)₅₇
Pos.		Higher is better₅₇
1	Switzerland	87.4
2	France	84.0
3	Denmark	81.6
4	Malta	80.9
5	Sweden	80.5
	...
117	Zambia	51.0
118	Grenada	50.9
119	Tanzania	50.8
120	China	50.7
121	Thailand	49.9
122	Micronesia	49.8
	Asia Avg	54.5
	World Avg	56.4
q=180.

Energy to GDP Efficiency (2014)₅₈
Pos.		Higher is better₅₈
1	Hong Kong	26.32
2	Sri Lanka	20.00
3	Panama	17.86
4	Colombia	17.54
5	Ireland	17.54
	...
95	Niger	05.81
96	Zambia	05.71
97	Canada	05.56
98	China	05.52
99	Nepal	05.35
100	Iran	05.32
	Asia Avg	09.14
	World Avg	09.29
q=119.

Convention on Biological Diversity
Pos.		Earlier is better Signed
1	China	1993 Dec 29
2	Guinea	1993 Dec 29
3	Cook Islands	1993 Dec 29
4	Vanuatu	1993 Dec 29
5	Papua New Guinea	1993 Dec 29
6	Mexico	1993 Dec 29
7	Armenia	1993 Dec 29
8	Ecuador	1993 Dec 29
9	Fiji	1993 Dec 29
10	Canada	1993 Dec 29
11	Monaco	1993 Dec 29
12	Maldives	1993 Dec 29
	Asia Avg	1899 Dec 30
	World Avg	1899 Dec 30
q=197.

Rational Beliefs on the Environment (2011)₅₉
Pos.		Higher is better %₅₉
1	Argentina	78.3%
2	Greece	77.6%
3	Brazil	77.1%
4	Trinidad & Tobago	74.5%
5	Costa Rica	74.2%
	...
134	Tunisia	19.3%
135	Czechia	16.0%
136	Estonia	15.9%
137	China	15.1%
138	Denmark	14.9%
139	Libya	14.6%
	Asia Avg	37.9%
	World Avg	39.9%
q=145.

Many rich countries. including China, are increasing their forest cover whilst they import foods and goods that result from deforestation elsewhere. Tracing supply chains is difficult and supply firms obfuscate the chain of production so it's difficult to tell what products are to blame, and, some governments are particularly reluctant to fund investigations into the deforestation footprint of imports.

“Keiichiro Kanemoto and Nguyen Tien Hoang, of the Research Institute for Humanity and Nature in Japan, combined data on global forest loss with that on international trade between 2001 and 2015. They calculated that rich-country demand [...] contributed to a net loss of 20,000 square kilometres of forest in the rest of the world in 2015 alone.”
The Economist (2021)₆₀

China's timber and rubber imports in particular "has helped to wipe out forests in Indochina"₆₁. The USA should take deforestation more seriously and engage in the international efforts, as the negative effects of deforestation will affect us all, but cannot be handled well by countries working alone.

10. Economic Inequality and Poverty

#capitalism #economics #health #inequality #life_expectancy #poverty #social_development

Inequality in Life Expectancy (2019)₆₂
Pos.		Higher is worse₆₂
184	Chad	40.90
183	Central African Rep.	40.10
182	Sierra Leone	39.00
181	Somalia	38.90
180	Nigeria	37.10
	...
71	Armenia	8.70
70	Barbados	8.70
69	Argentina	8.60
68	China	7.90
67	Macedonia	7.90
66	Uruguay	7.90
	Asia Avg	11.80
	World Avg	14.59
q=184.

Income Inequality (Gini Coefficient) (2017)₆₃
Pos.		Lower is better %₆₃
1	Ukraine	25.0
2	Belarus	25.4
3	Slovenia	25.4
4	Czechia	25.9
5	Moldova	25.9
	...
87	Myanmar (Burma)	38.1
88	Maldives	38.4
89	Burundi	38.6
90	China	38.6
91	Samoa	38.7
92	Israel	38.9
	Asia Avg	35.2
	World Avg	38.1
q=152.

Multidimensional Poverty (2018)₆₄
Pos.		Lower is better Severity₆₄
1	Armenia	.001
2	Ukraine	.001
3	Serbia	.001
4	Turkmenistan	.001
5	Jordan	.002
	...
21	Macedonia	.010
22	Guyana	.014
23	Dominican Rep.	.015
24	China	.016
25	Brazil	.016₆₅
26	Belize	.017
	Asia Avg	.084
	World Avg	.154
q=101.

11. Religion and Beliefs

#afterlife #belief #buddhism #christianity #god #heaven #hell #hinduism #islam #judaism #religion #religiosity #secularisation #universalism

Religiosity (2018)₄₅
Pos.		Lower is better %₄₅
1	China	3
2	Estonia	6
3	Czechia	7
4	Switzerland	9
5	Denmark	9
6	Germany	10
7	UK	10
8	Sweden	10
9	Japan	10
10	Finland	10
11	Latvia	11
12	France	11
	World Avg	54.3
q=106.

Disbelief In God (2007)₆₆
Pos.		Higher is better %₆₆
1	Vietnam	81
2	Japan	65
3	Sweden	64
4	Czechia	61
5	Estonia	49
	...
36	Lithuania	13
37	Singapore	13
38	Kazakhstan	12
39	China	12
40	Uruguay	12
41	USA	10
	World Avg	9.9
q=137.

Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism and Chinese folk religion are the four main forms of religion in China; their beliefs and practices have intermingled and interchanged over thousands of years, and most local communities combine parts of all of them₆₇_,₆₈_,₆₉_,₇₀_,₇₁. China's earliest dynasties continued folk practices that have existed since pre-history, with religious leaders being shamans and guides speaking on behalf of the spirit world₇₂ and a multitude of local gods and practices, and some of those ancient practices persist today in rural areas. Despite liberalisation over the past several decades, large numbers of Chinese - two thirds - do not consider themselves religious at all₇₃ and most new religious movements are suppressed₇₄_,₇₅.

For more, see:

"Religion in China" by Vexen Crabtree (2022).

Data from the Pew Forum, a professional polling outfit, states that in 2010 the religious makeup of this country was as follows in the table below₇₆:

Christian	5.1%
Muslim	1.8%
Hindu	0.1%
Buddhist	18.2%
Folk Religion	21.9%
Jew	0.1%
Unaffiliated	52.2%

It appears that when asked "What religion are you" many give pollsters the 'correct' answer despite how they actually feel, and despite what they actually believe. Although 47.2% of the populace say they belong to a religion, only 3% say that they are religious when the question is phrased as "Is religion an important part of your daily life?".

For more on this phenomenon, see:

"Institutionalized Religions Have Their Numbers Inflated by National Polls" by Vexen Crabtree (2009)

The CIA World Factbook has slightly different data, and states: Daoist (Taoist), Buddhist, Christian 3%-4%, Muslim 1%-2%. note: officially atheist (2002 est.)₇₇.

The Afterlife: Ipsos-NA in 2011 gathered some statistics on China₇₈. Belief in heaven and hell is at just 12%. More people don't know what to believe (34%). Some believe that upon death, you simply cease to exist (31%). Also, 2% specifically believe in heaven but not in hell (which is nice - making them possible "universalists"). 8% believe in reincarnation.

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