China:

Region: Eastern Asia

Capital: Beijing

Official Language/s: Standard Mandarin

Population: 1,338,613,000

Currency: Renminbi (popularly known as Yuan)

Government: Communist State

Demographics: 91% of China is comprised of Han Chinese, which includes all various native forms of Chinese people and thus there are many native languages, though the official dialect in Mandarin. The remainder of China’s huge population consists of other Asian people groups such as Koreans and Tibetans as well as a small European group.

Politics: China is regarded as one of the last five communist states in the world and is often seen to have a very oppressive and restrictive government through a Western perspective. Though less restrictive than early days of Communism, China is not close to becoming a liberal democracy. Some moves towards political liberalization have been made in villages though the Communist Party rule any form of government whether in cities or villages. Despite this system of government, 86% of China’s population has expressed satisfaction with the way their country is administered.

Economy: China has the fast growing economy in the world despite restrictive economic policies in the 1970’s and 1980’s. As a communist state, China is now managed as a market oriented economy. The country relies on cheap labour, good infrastructure, technology and high productivity. China has often been criticized however for their lack of human rights in many workplaces and factories, though cheap labour is commonplace across the country. China is a larger energy user and is criticized for not reforming production means to reduced energy usage.

Religion: Though China is governed as an Atheist country, various religions are still practiced throughout the country. As religion however is outlawed, there is much religious persecution in China. Religions find in China include Buddhism, Daoism, Islam and Christianity. Christianity is quickly growing in China, and grows in the form of underground churches. Persecution of Christians in China is severe.  

Health: The Ministry of Health governs healthcare in China, and has emphasized the importance of sanitation and hygiene which has seen developments in the goal to eradicate the widespread diseases cholera, typhoid and scarlet fever. Despite improvements in the public health system, there are still many issues that need to be tackled include respiratory problems as a result of pollution and a possible HIV/AIDS epidemic. Diseases often break out on a large scale as living conditions are not always good, e.g. SARS in 2003. Water pollution is also a problem in China, with an estimated 500 million people without access to safe drinking water.