The nation’s population stood at 23.43 million at the end of last year, with women outnumbering men by more than 30,000, according to the latest Ministry of the Interior statistics.
There were 11,697,971 men, or 49.92 percent of the population at the end of last year, compared with 11,735,782 women, or 50.08 percent of the population. Women outnumbered men by 37,811.
In terms of the gender structure of the population of Taiwan’s 22 cities and counties, women outnumbered men in the relatively urban areas of Taipei, New Taipei City, Hsinchu, Greater Taichung, Greater Kaohsiung and Chiayi, while men outnumbered women in other cities and counties.
The sex ratio — the number of males per 100 females — was at its lowest in Taipei at 92.1 and at its highest in outlying Lienchiang County at 133.6.
In terms of the age structure of the population at the end of last year, there were 3.28 million people aged 0-14, or 14 percent of the total.
There were 17.35 million people aged 15-64, or 74 percent of the total, and 2.81 million people aged 65 or older, or 12 percent of the total.
The ratio of senior citizens remained on the upswing, the ministry said, adding that it has continued to climb since Taiwan first met the threshold for an aging society — 7 percent of the total population 65 or older — in 1993.
The nation’s aging index — the number of seniors per every 100 young people under the age of 15 — was 85.7 at the end of last year, an increase of 36.7 over the past decade.
Although Taiwan’s aging index at the end of last year was lower than that of Canada, Japan and several European nations, it was higher than that of the US, Australia, New Zealand and other Asian countries.
Global bodies should stop excluding Taiwan for political reasons, President William Lai (賴清德) told Pope Francis in a letter, adding that he agrees war has no winners. The Vatican is one of only 12 countries to retain formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, and Taipei has watched with concern efforts by Beijing and the Holy See to improve ties. In October, the Vatican and China extended an accord on the appointment of Catholic bishops in China for four years, pointing to a new level of trust between the two parties. Lai, writing to the pope in response to the pontiff’s message on Jan. 1’s
A Vietnamese migrant worker on Thursday won the NT$12 million (US$383,590) jackpot on a scratch-off lottery ticket she bought from a lottery shop in Changhua County’s Puyan Township (埔鹽), Taiwan Lottery Co said yesterday. The lottery winner, who is in her 30s and married, said she would continue to work in Taiwan and send her winnings to her family in Vietnam to improve their life. More Taiwanese and migrant workers have flocked to the lottery shop on Sec 2 of Jhangshuei Road (彰水路) to share in the luck. The shop owner, surnamed Chen (陳), said that his shop has been open for just
TAKE BREAKS: A woman developed cystitis by refusing to get up to use the bathroom while playing mahjong for fear of disturbing her winning streak, a doctor said People should stand up and move around often while traveling or playing mahjong during the Lunar New Year holiday, as prolonged sitting can lead to cystitis or hemorrhoids, doctors said. Yuan’s General Hospital urologist Lee Tsung-hsi (李宗熹) said that he treated a 63-year-old woman surnamed Chao (趙) who had been sitting motionless and holding off going to the bathroom, increasing her risk of bladder infection. Chao would drink beverages and not urinate for several hours while playing mahjong with friends and family, especially when she was on a winning streak, afraid that using the bathroom would ruin her luck, he said. She had
MUST REMAIN FREE: A Chinese takeover of Taiwan would lead to a global conflict, and if the nation blows up, the world’s factories would fall in a week, a minister said Taiwan is like Prague in 1938 facing Adolf Hitler; only if Taiwan remains free and democratic would the world be safe, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said in an interview with Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera. The ministry on Saturday said Corriere della Sera is one of Italy’s oldest and most read newspapers, frequently covers European economic and political issues, and that Wu agreed to an interview with the paper’s senior political analyst Massimo Franco in Taipei on Jan. 3. The interview was published on Jan. 26 with the title “Taiwan like Prague in 1938 with Hitler,” the ministry
RSS