Taiwan (Republic of China)

https://www.humantruth.info/taiwan.html

By Vexen Crabtree 2025

Taiwan Republic of China
Status	Proto Independent State
Social and Moral Index	27th best
Capital	Taipei
Land Area
Location	Asia
Groupings	Small Islands
Population
GNI
ISO3166-1 Codes	TW, TWN, 158₁
Internet Domain	.tw₂
Currency	Dollar (TWD)₃
Telephone	+886₄

1. Overview

#buddhism #china #confucianism #japan #taiwan #taoism #USA

Taiwan is an independent nation-state that first separated from China in 1895 when taken by Japan, until World War 2. Not long after, when the 1949 Communist revolution saw mainland China fall under a new government, Taiwan did not follow suit, and the original Chinese government exiled itself there. Ever since, Taiwan has operated independent of China, but, China claims it, and has the aim of governing it again in the future. It exerts diplomatic pressure across the world to prevent others from recognizing Taiwan as independent.

“In 1895, military defeat forced China's Qing Dynasty to cede Taiwan to Japan. Taiwan came under Chinese Nationalist control after World War II. Following the Communist victory on the mainland in 1949, 2 million Nationalists fled to Taiwan and established a government using the 1947 constitution drawn up for all of China. Beginning in the 1950s, the ruling authorities gradually democratized and incorporated the local population within the governing structure. This process expanded rapidly in the 1980s. In 2000, Taiwan underwent its first peaceful transfer of power from the Nationalist to the Democratic Progressive Party. Throughout this period, the island prospered and became one of East Asia's economic "Tigers." The dominant political issues continue to be the relationship between Taiwan and China - specifically the question of Taiwan's eventual status - as well as domestic political and economic reform.”
CIA's The World Factbook (2013)₅

As a result of political pressure, the USA does not formally list Taiwan as an independent state, but does actively arm it for self-defense₆, and China refrains "from using military force to gain control over the island". Ambassadors of countries routinely visit Taiwan when making trade deals or discussing politics, which often upsets China. This status-quo is however, "increasingly under pressure"₆:

Travel Commentary:

“In the past years, citizens in all countries polled for the Munich Security Index have become considerably more concerned about the risk a Chinese invasion of Taiwan poses to the world. China seeks to bring the island under its control, with Chinese President Xi Jinping linking unification with Taiwan to his “national rejuvenation” goal for China. [...] In 2022, the Chinese military made more than 1,700 incursions into Taiwan's self-declared Air Defense Identification Zone, more than in the previous three years combined.”
"Munich Security Report" (2024)₇

“With its all-round adventure landscape, heritage-rich capital, diverse folk traditions and feted night market scene, Taiwan offers a continent-sized travel list for one green island. Famed for centuries as Ilha Formosa (Beautiful Isle), in Taiwan you can criss-cross mountains on colonial-era hiking trails, cycle a lone highway with the blue Pacific on one side and green volcanic arcs on the other or climb to the summit of Yushan, Taiwan´s 3952m alpine roof.
To fuel all of this adventure, Taiwan offers the gamut of Chinese cuisines, as well as the best Japanese outside Tokyo, and a full-house of local specialities from Hakka stir-fries and Taipei beef noodles to aboriginal-style barbecued wild boar.
Taiwan will feed your soul, too: the island is heir to the entire Chinese tradition of Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism and that amorphous collection of deities and demons worshipped as folk faith. But over the centuries the people have blended their way to a unique and tolerant religious culture. In doing so, the Taiwanese have created Asia's most vibrant democracy, and liberal society, with a raucous free press, gender equality and respect for human rights and increasingly animal rights as well.”
"The World" by Lonely Planet (2014)₈

2. Taiwan National and Social Development

#human_development

Social & Moral Development Index₉
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank₉
1	Denmark	25.2
2	Norway	28.2
3	Netherlands	30.1
	...
24	UK	48.1
25	S. Korea	48.1
26	Czechia	49.2
27	Taiwan	50.0
28	Uruguay	52.1
29	Poland	53.9
30	Estonia	54.2
31	Cyprus	54.5
	Asia Avg	92.0
	World Avg	88.4
q=199.

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. Human Rights, Equality & Tolerance

#equality #freedom #gender_equality #human_rights #morals #politics #prejudice #Taiwan #taiwan_freedom #tolerance

Human Rights, Equality & Tolerance (2025)₁₀
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank₁₀
1	Sweden	7.8
2	Netherlands	8.7
3	Denmark	8.8
	...
25	Czechia	38.0
26	Costa Rica	38.8
27	Estonia	40.2
28	Taiwan	41.3
29	S. Korea	44.8
30	Slovakia	46.3
	Asia Avg	103.00
	World Avg	89.80
q=199.

When it comes to ensuring human rights and freedom, Taiwan leads the world, setting excellent examples. Taiwan performs the best in terms of its average Freedom in the World rating and in freethought₁₁. It comes in the best 20 in combatting modern slavery₁₂. And finally, it does better than average for supporting press freedom₁₃ (the best in Asia), supporting personal, civil & economic freedoms₁₄ (one of the lowest in Asia) and in LGBT equality in the 2020s₁₅.

For tables, charts and commentary, see:

Human Rights and Freedom in Taiwan

4. Taiwan's Responsibility Towards The Environment

#climate_change #energy #food #germany #iceland #meat #singapore #south_korea #sustainability #taiwan #the_environment #veganism #vegetarianism

Compared to Asia (2025)₁₆
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank₁₆
1	Sri Lanka	34.9
2	Nepal	47.9
3	India	49.5
	...
23	Georgia	83.6
24	S. Korea	84.0
25	Cambodia	84.0
26	Taiwan	86.1
27	Malaysia	89.5
28	Palestine	92.7
29	Qatar	94.1
30	Saudi Arabia	94.9
31	Israel	95.8
	Asia Avg	86.44
q=51.

Responsibility Towards The Environment (2025)₁₆
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank₁₆
1	Sri Lanka	34.9
2	Uruguay	43.2
3	Switzerland	45.0
	...
108	Honduras	84.6
109	Zambia	85.4
110	Venezuela	86.1
111	Taiwan	86.1
112	Macedonia	86.9
113	Canada	87.2
114	Guyana	87.4
115	Gabon	87.9
	World Avg	84.93
q=199.

We have known for a long term that we must protect the environment from habitation destruction, over-exploitation, pollution, and the emissions that cause climate change. In 1998, Greenpeace wrote that "Environment can no longer be meaningfully separated from health, quality of life, democracy, education, economy or trade"₁₇. What countries have been doing the right thing, via legislation and national culture? All countries' current and historical approach towards the environment is gauged via 21 datasets, including multiple decades of data on its forested percent change 2000-2020, its environmental performance, energy to GDP efficiency, its sign-up rate to major international accords on protecting the environment, the rate of rational beliefs on the environment in the population, reducing annual meat consumption per person and its score on the Green Future Index.

The countries that do the best (Sri Lanka, Uruguay and Switzerland) tend to have avoided the excesses of early industrial countries, and have not yet repeated the same mistakes of environmental destruction - at least, not on the same scale. The regions with the best average results per country are Central America, South America and Scandinavia. The worst are Eritrea, The Vatican City and Timor-Leste (E. Timor), and the worst regions Micronesia, Australasia and Melanesia.

For more, see:

"Countries With the Best Environmental Records" by Vexen Crabtree (2025).

Taiwan is positioned 111th in the world in terms of its responsibility towards the environment. This rank is computed from 21 data sets. Taiwan does better than average for its environmental performance₁₈ (one of the best in Asia). But unfortunately Taiwan gets most other things wrong. It does worse than average when it comes to its score on the Green Future Index₁₉ (still good for Asia) and in energy to GDP efficiency₂₀. And finally, it falls into the worst-performing 20 in terms of reducing annual meat consumption per person₂₁ (amongst the highest in Asia).

Environmental Performance Higher is better₁₈
Pos.		2018₁₈
1	Switzerland	87.4
2	France	84.0
3	Denmark	81.6
	...
20	Japan	74.7
21	Australia	74.1
22	Greece	73.6
23	Taiwan	72.8
24	Cyprus	72.6
25	Canada	72.2
26	Portugal	71.9
27	USA	71.2
	Asia Avg	54.5
	World Avg	56.4
q=180.

Energy to GDP Efficiency Lower is better₂₀
Pos.		2022 Avg₂₀
1	Rwanda	0.25
2	Chad	0.26
3	Tanzania	0.31
	...
87	Albania	1.08
88	Jordan	1.10
89	Mexico	1.10
90	Taiwan	1.10
91	Bolivia	1.11
92	Chile	1.11
93	Honduras	1.15
94	Slovenia	1.15
	Asia Avg	1.50
	World Avg	1.23
q=165.

Meat Consumption Lower is better₂₁
Pos.		2021 kg₂₁
1	Congo, DR	03.0
2	Burundi	03.5
3	Bangladesh	04.3
	...
165	Belarus	88.9
166	Poland	89.3
167	St Lucia	89.6
168	Taiwan	89.8
169	Croatia	90.8
170	French Polynesia	92.5
171	Portugal	94.6
172	St Kitts & Nevis	96.6
	Asia Avg	46.7
	World Avg	52.5
q=185.

In the 2010s, meat consumption per person in Taiwan was well above the global average (of 49kgs per year), putting unnecessary strain on water supplies and the environment.₂₁

Green Future Index Higher is better₁₉
Pos.		2023 Score₁₉
1	Iceland	6.7
2	Finland	6.7
3	Norway	6.4
	...
42=	Philippines	4.6
42=	Israel	4.6
42=	Australia	4.6
45=	Taiwan	4.5
45=	Mexico	4.5
47	Ukraine	4.4
48	Argentina	4.3
49	Indonesia	4.3
	Asia Avg	4.3
	World Avg	4.8
q=76.

The 2023 edition of the Green Futures Index lists Taiwan among five countries who are doing the best at recycling, alongside Germany, Iceland, Singapore and South Korea).₂₂

5. Taiwan's Modernity and Learning

#education #english #intelligence #it_security #maths #metric #modernity #research #science #technology #the_internet

Compared to Asia (2025)₂₃
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank₂₃
1	Taiwan	25.4
2	S. Korea	25.5
3	Japan	26.8
4	Israel	30.4
5	Hong Kong	31.2
6	Singapore	36.1
7	Russia	38.3
8	Turkey	46.0
9	Cyprus	46.4
10	Kazakhstan	48.2
11	Georgia	51.9
12	Uzbekistan	55.9
13	Malaysia	57.8
	Asia Avg	83.04
q=51.

Modernity & Learning (2025)₂₃
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank₂₃
1	Vatican City	1.0
2	Finland	4.8
3	Belgium	8.5
	...
22	Portugal	22.1
23	Italy	23.0
24	Slovenia	24.1
25	Taiwan	25.4
26	S. Korea	25.5
27	Japan	26.8
28	Slovakia	27.5
29	Latvia	29.0
	World Avg	80.33
q=194.

The most modern countries, with the best results from education, the highest levels of research, and with the easiest access to information on the Internet, are The Vatican City, Finland and Belgium₂₄. The worst countries are S. Sudan, Eritrea and Somalia₂₄. Despite improves in global education, access to tertiary (adult) education is becoming increasingly unequal between the rich haves and the poor have-nots₂₅.

“Education, at all levels and ages, is the single most vital support for equality as well as being a country's most vital economic and social resource. [...] Every successful aspirant to modernisation and economic development, from Japan to South Korea, China to Chile, has got there with a big emphasis on education.”
Bill Emmott (2017)₂₆

23 datasets are used to calculate points for each country, including multiple decades of data on Research and Development, Intellectual Endeavours, metric system adoption rate, Religiosity, IQ, Secondary Education, Length of Schooling, Maths, Science & Reading, the percent of citizens with access to the internet, Freedom On The Internet, IT Security, IPv6 Uptake and digital quality of life. The regions with the best average results per country are Scandinavia, Baltic States and Europe₂₄, whereas the worst are Melanesia, Africa and Micronesia₂₄.

For more, see:

" Which Countries are Most Modern, With the Best Education and Internet Access?" by Vexen Crabtree (2025).

Modernity Datasets:

Research & Development Higher is better
Pos.		2016 % RDP PPP
1	S. Korea	4.29₂₇
2	Israel	4.11₂₇
3	Japan	3.58₂₇
4	Finland	3.17₂₇
5	Sweden	3.16₂₇
6	Denmark	3.05₂₇
7	Taiwan	3.01₂₇
8	Austria	3.00₂₈
9	Switzerland	2.96₂₉
10	Germany	2.84₂₇
11	USA	2.74₃₀
12	Belgium	2.46₂₇
	Asia Avg	0.75
	World Avg	0.84
q=126.

Metric System Adoption Rate Higher is better₃₁
Pos.		2025 %₃₁
1=	Slovakia	100
1=	Poland	100
1=	Portugal	100
	...
32=	Argentina	95
32=	Kosovo	95
32=	China	95
32=	Taiwan	95
32=	Honduras	95
32=	Vietnam	95
32=	Venezuela	95
32=	Cyprus	95
	Asia Avg	90
	World Avg	92
q=187.

Taiwan officially adopted metric in 1952₃₂. Progression:

1960 (70%): Metric official; traditional units common informally.
1970 (85%): Standardization in commerce/education.
1980 (95%): Metric dominant across sectors.
2000 (95%).
2025 (95%).

IQ Higher is better₃₃
Pos.		2006₃₃
1=	Hong Kong	108
1=	Singapore	108
3	S. Korea	106
4=	Japan	105
4=	Taiwan	105
4=	China	105
7	Italy	102
8=	Iceland	101
8=	Switzerland	101
8=	Mongolia	101
11=	Netherlands	100
11=	Norway	100
	Asia Avg	90.4
	World Avg	85.6
q=138.

Education Datasets:

Maths, Science & Reading Higher is better₃₄
Pos.		2015 Score₃₄
1	Singapore	1655
2	Hong Kong	1598
3	Japan	1586
4	Macau	1582
5	Estonia	1573
6=	Taiwan	1571
6=	Canada	1571
8	Finland	1568
9	S. Korea	1557
10	China	1543₃₅
11=	Ireland	1528
11=	Slovenia	1528
	Asia Avg	1398
	World Avg	1389
q=70.

Technology and Information Datasets:

IT Security Lower is better₃₆
Pos.		2013₃₆
1=	Ireland	0.11
1=	Luxembourg	0.11
1=	Belize	0.11
	...
14	Peru	0.30
15	Latvia	0.33
16	Pakistan	0.38
17	Taiwan	0.44
18	Sweden	0.44
19	Romania	0.52
20	Turkey	0.52
21	Poland	0.55
	Asia Avg	1.08
	World Avg	0.98

6. Taiwan's Culture, Peace and Inequality

#capitalism #charitability #charity #corruption #culture #economics #equality #extremism #happiness #human_development #inequality #internationalism #morals #peace #politics #religious_violence #social_development #terrorism

National Culture Datasets:

Taiwan has a good long-term record on keeping corruption low, and has spent the last ten years making things even better.

World Giving Index Higher is better₃₇
Pos.		2022 %₃₇
1	Indonesia	68.0
2	Kenya	61.0
3	USA	59.0
	...
96=	Montenegro	34.0
96=	Kazakhstan	34.0
96=	Gabon	34.0
96=	Taiwan	34.0
100=	Bangladesh	33.0
100=	Tanzania	33.0
102=	Spain	32.0
102=	Benin	32.0
	Asia Avg	37.9
	World Avg	39.6
q=125.

Corruption Higher is better₃₈
Pos.		2022 Points₃₈
1	Denmark	90.0
2=	Finland	87.0
2=	New Zealand	87.0
	...
22	Austria	71.0
23	Seychelles	70.0
24	USA	69.0
25=	Taiwan	68.0
25=	Bhutan	68.0
27=	UAE	67.0
27=	Chile	67.0
29	Barbados	65.0
	Asia Avg	39.98
	World Avg	42.98
q=180.

Happiness Higher is better₃₉
Pos.		2024 Score₃₉
1	Finland	7.7
2	Denmark	7.5
3	Iceland	7.5
	...
24	USA	6.7
25	Belize	6.7
26	Poland	6.7
27	Taiwan	6.7
28	Uruguay	6.7
29	Kosovo	6.7
30	Kuwait	6.6
31	Serbia	6.6
	Asia Avg	5.41
	World Avg	5.58
q=147.

Passport Reach (2020s) Higher is better₄₀
Pos.		Total Q₄₀
1	Singapore	192.2
2	Japan	192.0
3	S. Korea	190.7
	...
106	Bahrain	85.8
107	Romania	82.7
108	Saudi Arabia	82.3
109	Taiwan	80.8
110	Thailand	79.5
111	Bolivia	79.3
112	Namibia	78.7
113	Belarus	78.5
	Asia Avg	85.1
	World Avg	108.8
q=195.

Peace Versus Instability Datasets:

Global Peace Index Lower is better₄₁
Pos.		2023 Score₄₁
1	Iceland	1.12
2	Denmark	1.31
3	Ireland	1.31
	...
30	Bulgaria	1.64
31=	Spain	1.65
31=	Romania	1.65
31=	Taiwan	1.65
34	Italy	1.66
35	Kuwait	1.67
36	Lithuania	1.67
37	UK	1.69
	Asia Avg	2.17
	World Avg	2.07
q=163.

Impact of Terrorism Lower is better₄₂
Pos.		2019 Score₄₂
1	Togo	0.00
2	Mongolia	0.00
3	Swaziland	0.00
	...
52	Honduras	0.99
53=	Vietnam	1.00
53=	Montenegro	1.00
55	Taiwan	1.01
56	Laos	1.03
57	Armenia	1.17
58	Senegal	1.19
59	Morocco	1.22
	Asia Avg	3.60
	World Avg	2.78
q=150.

Economic Inequality and Poverty Datasets:

Income Inequality (Gini Coefficient) Lower is better₄₃
Pos.		2023 %₄₃
1	Slovakia	24.1%₄₄
2	Slovenia	24.3%₄₄
3	Belarus	24.4%₄₅
	...
41=	Mongolia	31.4%₄₆
41=	Malta	31.4%₄₅
43	France	31.5%₄₄
44	Taiwan	31.6%₄₄
45	Canada	31.7%₄₇
46=	Lebanon	31.8%₄₈
46=	Estonia	31.8%₄₄
48	Egypt	31.9%₄₇
	Asia Avg	33.0%
	World Avg	36.5%
q=167.

7. Religion and Beliefs

#belief #buddhism #christianity #god #hinduism #islam #judaism #religion #religion_in_taiwan #Taiwan

Disbelief In God (2007)₄₉
Pos.		Higher is better %₄₉
1	Vietnam	81
2	Japan	65
3	Sweden	64
	...
18	Finland	28
19	Russia	27
20	Australia	25
21	Taiwan	24
22=	New Zealand	22
22=	Canada	22
24=	Latvia	20
24=	Ukraine	20
24=	Mongolia	20
27	Austria	18
28=	Slovakia	17
28=	Switzerland	17
28=	Belarus	17
31=	Greece	16
31=	Iceland	16
33=	Spain	15
	World Avg	9.9
q=137.

Pew Forum polling over the decades has found the following adherency rates:₅₀:

	2010	2020
Other	51.1%	51.7%
Unaffiliated	22.8%	23.1%
Buddhist	20.9%	19.2%
Christian	4.94%	5.54%
Muslim	0.345%	0.498%
Jewish	None	None
Hindu	None	None

The CIA World Factbook has slightly different data, and states: mixture of Buddhist and Taoist 93%, Christian 4.5%, other 2.5%₅₁.

Freedom of Religion and Belief:

Taiwan has enjoyed an increase in religious liberty since 1989. In that year the Law on Civic Organizations "allowed all religions to exist and removed multiple prohibitions". At the start of this period, in 1990, there were 83 religious groups in Taiwan and this surged to 1062 in the year 2004 "and the total number of temples and churches more than doubled"₅₂.

Links: