| Introduction - Macau: |
Country | Macau |
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Background | Colonized by the Portuguese in the 16th century, Macau was the first European settlement in the Far East. Pursuant to an agreement signed by China and Portugal on 13 April 1987, Macau became the Macau Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China on 20 December 1999. China has promised that, under its one country, two systems formula, Chinas socialist economic system will not be practiced in Macau, and that Macau will enjoy a high degree of autonomy in all matters except foreign and defense affairs for the next 50 years. |
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| Location - Macau: |
Location | Eastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea and China |
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Geographic coordinates | 22 10 N, 113 33 E |
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Map references | Southeast Asia |
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Area | total: 28.2 sq km
land: 28.2 sq km
water: 0 sq km |
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Area comparative | less than one-sixth the size of Washington, DC |
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Land boundaries | total: 0.34 km
regional border: China 0.34 km |
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Coastline | 41 km |
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Maritime claims | not specified |
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Climate | subtropical; marine with cool winters, warm summers |
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Terrain | generally flat |
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Elevation extremes | lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Coloane Alto 172.4 m |
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Natural resources | NEGL |
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Land use | arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
other: 100% (2005) |
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Irrigated land | NA |
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Natural hazards | typhoons |
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Environment current issues | NA |
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Environment international agreements | party to: Marine Dumping (associate member), Ship Pollution (associate member) |
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Geography note | essentially urban; an area of land reclaimed from the sea measuring 5.2 sq km and known as Cotai now connects the islands of Coloane and Taipa; the island area is connected to the mainland peninsula by three bridges |
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| People - Macau: |
Population | 456,989 (July 2007 est.) |
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Age structure | 0-14 years: 15.4% (male 36,413/female 33,981)
15-64 years: 76.6% (male 166,797/female 183,088)
65 years and over: 8% (male 15,541/female 21,169) (2007 est.) |
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Dependency status | special administrative region of China |
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Median age | total: 36.6 years
male: 36 years
female: 36.9 years (2007 est.) |
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Population growth rate | 0.841% (2007 est.) |
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Birth rate | 8.57 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
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Death rate | 4.59 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
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Net migration rate | 4.42 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) |
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Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.072 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.911 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.734 male(s)/female
total population: 0.918 male(s)/female (2007 est.) |
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Infant mortality rate | total: 4.33 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.51 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 4.13 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) |
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Life expectancy at birth | total population: 82.27 years
male: 79.44 years
female: 85.25 years (2007 est.) |
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Total fertility rate | 1.03 children born/woman (2007 est.) |
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Hiv aids adult prevalence rate | NA |
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Hiv aids people living with hiv aids | NA |
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Hiv aids deaths | NA |
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Nationality | noun: Chinese
adjective: Chinese |
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Ethnic groups | Chinese 95.7%, Macanese (mixed Portuguese and Asian ancestry) 1%, other 3.3% (2001 census) |
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Religions | Buddhist 50%, Roman Catholic 15%, none and other 35% (1997 est.) |
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Languages | Cantonese 87.9%, Hokkien 4.4%, Mandarin 1.6%, other Chinese dialects 3.1%, other 3% (2001 census) |
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Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 91.3%
male: 95.3%
female: 87.8% (2001 census) |
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| Government - Macau: |
Country name | conventional long form: Macau Special Administrative Region
conventional short form: Macau
local long form: Aomen Tebie Xingzhengqu (Chinese); Regiao Administrativa Especial de Macau (Portuguese)
local short form: Aomen (Chinese); Macau (Portuguese) |
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Government type | limited democracy |
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Administrative divisions | none (special administrative region of China) |
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Independence | none (special administrative region of China) |
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National holiday | National Day (Anniversary of the Founding of the Peoples Republic of China), 1 October (1949); note - 20 December 1999 is celebrated as Macau Special Administrative Region Establishment Day |
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Constitution | Basic Law, approved on 31 March 1993 by Chinas National Peoples Congress, is Macaus mini-constitution |
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Legal system | based on Portuguese civil law system |
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Suffrage | direct election 18 years of age, universal for permanent residents living in Macau for the past seven years; indirect election limited to organizations registered as corporate voters (257 are currently registered) and a 300-member Election Committee drawn from broad regional groupings, municipal organizations, and central government bodies |
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Executive branch | chief of state: President of China HU Jintao (since 15 March 2003)
head of government: Chief Executive Edmund HO Hau-wah (since 20 December 1999)
cabinet: Executive Council consists of one government secretary, three legislators, four businessmen, one pro-Beijing unionist, and one pro-Beijing educator
elections: chief executive chosen by a 300-member Election Committee for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 29 August 2004 (next to be held in 2009)
election results: Edmund HO Hau-wah reelected received 296 votes; three members submitted blank ballots; one member was absent |
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Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Assembly (29 seats; 12 members elected by popular vote, 10 by indirect vote, and 7 appointed by the chief executive; to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 25 September 2005 (next in September 2009)
election results: percent of vote - New Democratic Macau Association 18.8%, Macau United Citizens Association 16.6%, Union for Development 13.3%, Union for Promoting Progress 9.6%, Macau Development Alliance 9.3%, others 32.4%; seats by political group - New Democratic Macau Association 2, Macau United Citizens Association 2, Union for Development 2, Union for Promoting Progress 2, Macau Development Alliance 1, others 3; 10 seats filled by professional and business groups; seven members appointed by chief executive |
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Judicial branch | Court of Final Appeal in Macau Special Administrative Region |
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Political parties and leaders | Civil Service Union [Jose Maria Pereira COUTINHO]; Development Union [KWAN Tsui-hang]; Macau Development Alliance [Angela LEONG On-kei]; Macau United Citizens Association [CHAN Meng-kam]; New Democratic Macau Association [Antonio NG Kuok-cheong]; United Forces |
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Political pressure groups and leaders | NA |
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International organization participation | IHO, IMF, IMO (associate), ISO (correspondent), UNESCO (associate), UNWTO (associate), UPU, WCO, WMO, WTO |
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Diplomatic representation in the us | none (special administrative region of China) |
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Diplomatic representation from the us | the US has no offices in Macau; US interests are monitored by the US Consulate General in Hong Kong |
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Flag description | light green with a lotus flower above a stylized bridge and water in white, beneath an arc of five gold, five-pointed stars: one large in center of arc and four smaller |
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| Economy - Macau: |
Economy overview | Macaus well-to-do economy has remained one of the most open in the world since its reversion to China in 1999. Apparel exports and tourism are mainstays of the economy. Although the territory was hit hard by the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis and the global downturn in 2001, its economy grew 10.1% in 2002, 14.2% in 2003, and 28.6% in 2004 before slowing to 6.7% in 2005. The economic boom was powered by gambling, tourism, and the construction necessary to support such endeavors. Chinas decision to ease travel restrictions led to a rapid rise in the number of mainland visitors. The opening of Macaus gaming industry to foreign access in 2001 spurred an increase in public works expenditures. The budget also returned to surplus in 2002 because of the surge in visitors from China and a hike in taxes on gambling profits, which generated about 70% of government revenue. Much of Macaus textile industry may move to the mainland due to the termination in 2005 of the Multi-Fiber Agreement, which provided a near guarantee of export markets, leaving the territory more dependent on gambling and trade-related services to generate growth. The Closer Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between Macau and mainland China that came into effect on 1 January 2004 offers many Macau-made products tariff-free access to the mainland. The range of products covered by CEPA was expanded on 1 January 2005. |
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Gdp purchasing power parity | $10 billion (2004) |
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Gdp official exchange rate | $11.56 billion (2005) |
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Gdp real growth rate | 6.7% |
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Gdp per capita ppp | $24,300 (2005) |
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Gdp composition by sector | agriculture: 0.1%
industry: 7.2%
services: 92.7% (2002 est.) |
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Labor force | 248,000 (2005) |
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Labor force by occupation | manufacturing 13.7%, construction 10.5%, transport and communications 5.9%, wholesale and retail trade 14.6%, restaurants and hotels 10.3%, gambling 17.9%, public sector 7.8%, other services and agriculture 19.3% (2005 est.) |
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Unemployment rate | 4.1% (2005) |
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Population below poverty line | NA% |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
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Inflation rate consumer prices | 4.4% (2005) |
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Budget | revenues: $3.16 billion
expenditures: $3.16 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (FY05/06) |
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Agriculture products | only 2% of land area is cultivated, mainly by vegetable growers; fishing, mostly for crustaceans, is important; some of the catch is exported to Hong Kong |
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Industries | tourism, gambling, clothing, textiles, electronics, footwear, toys |
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Industrial production growth rate | NA% |
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Electricity production | 2.027 billion kWh (2005) |
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Electricity consumption | 2.159 billion kWh (2005) |
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Electricity exports | 1 million kWh (2004) |
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Electricity imports | 340.8 million kWh (2005) |
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Oil production | 0 bbl/day (2005 est.) |
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Oil consumption | 12,360 bbl/day (2005 est.) |
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Oil exports | 21 bbl/day (2005) |
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Oil imports | 12,840 bbl/day (2005) |
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Oil proved reserves | 0 bbl |
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Natural gas production | 0 cu m (2005 est.) |
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Natural gas consumption | 43.96 million cu m (2005 est.) |
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Exports | $3.156 billion f.o.b.; note - includes reexports (2005) |
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Exports commodities | clothing, textiles, footwear, toys, electronics, machinery and parts |
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Exports partners | US 44.1%, China 14.8%, Hong Kong 11.3%, Germany 7.3%, UK 4.1% (2006) |
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Imports | $3.912 billion c.i.f. (2005) |
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Imports commodities | raw materials and semi-manufactured goods, consumer goods (foodstuffs, beverages, tobacco), capital goods, mineral fuels and oils |
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Imports partners | China 45.2%, Hong Kong 10.2%, Japan 8.4%, US 5.5%, Singapore 4.1%, France 4% (2006) |
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Debt external | $3.1 billion (2004) |
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Economic aid recipient | $NA |
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Currency code | pataca (MOP) |
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Exchange rates | patacas per US dollar - 8.0015 (2006), 8.011 (2005), 8.022 (2004), 8.021 (2003), 8.033 (2002) |
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| Communications - Macau: |
Fiscal year | calendar year |
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Telephones main lines in use | 176,700 (2006) |
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Telephones mobile cellular | 636,300 (2006) |
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Telephone system | general assessment: fairly modern communication facilities maintained for domestic and international services
domestic: NA
international: country code - 853; HF radiotelephone communication facility; access to international communications carriers provided via Hong Kong and China; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
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Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998) |
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Television broadcast stations | 1 (2006) |
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Internet country code | .mo |
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Internet hosts | 108 (2006) |
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Internet users | 200,000 (2006) |
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| Transportation - Macau: |
Airports | 1 (2006) |
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Airports with paved runways | total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (2006) |
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Roadways | total: 368 km
paved: 368 km (2005) |
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Ports and terminals | Macau |
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| Military - Macau: |
Military branches | no regular military forces |
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Manpower available for military service | males age 18-49: 112,744 (2005 est.) |
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Manpower fit for military service | males age 18-49: 91,299 (2005 est.) |
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Military note | defense is the responsibility of China |
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Trafficking in persons | current situation: Macau is a transit and destination territory for women trafficked for the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation; most females in Macaus sizeable sex industry come from the interior regions of China or Mongolia, though a significant number also come from Russia, Eastern Europe, Thailand, and Vietnam; the majority of women in Macaus prostitution trade appear to have entered Macau and the sex trade voluntarily, though there is evidence that some are deceived or coerced into sexual servitude, often through the use of debt bondage; organized criminal syndicates are reportedly involved in bringing women to Macau, and fear of reprisals from these groups may prevent some women from seeking help
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List - Macau is placed on the Tier 2 Watch List for failing to show evidence of increasing efforts to address trafficking since 2004 |
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Disputes international | none |
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This page was last updated on 16 September, 2007
