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Census puts the nation's population at over 22 million

The population in the Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu Area stood at 22,448,817 as of the end of May, the Ministry of the Interior reported yesterday.

Taiwan's total population stood at 22.16 million as of May 2000, according to ministry tallies. At that time, the country's population density was 612 persons per square kilometer, making Taiwan the second most densely populated place in the world after Bangladesh.

The earliest census taken in Taiwan recorded the island's population at 3.12 million in 1905. The figure nearly doubled in 40 years to 6.02 million in 1945. The population further increased to 7.39 million by 1949 due to the influx of migrants from China.

In 1950, the natural rate of population increase peaked at 3.84 percent. A baby boom in the postwar years put excessive population pressure on Taiwan's economy, and the government began encouraging family planning. By 1999, the population growth rate had dropped to 0.75 percent.
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