Geography

Physical geography

Covering 9,596,961 square kilometres of central and east Asia, China is the third largest country in the world. Its topography divides into three major regions: the south-western mountains, the north-western uplands and deserts, and the eastern plains.

In the south-west, the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau has spectacular scenery with many steep gorges, waterfalls, underground caverns and limestone pinnacles. Mount Everest, which is known as Chomolangma, meaning ‘Goddess Mother of Snows’ in Tibetan, lies on the border with Nepal. It is the highest peak in the world at 8,850 metres.

The north-west includes the Taklamakan Desert, shifting salt lakes and the Turpan Depression, which is 154 metres below sea level.

Melting snow from the mountains of western China provides the headwaters for many of the country’s rivers: the Yangtze (Ch’ang Chiang), Huang Ho (Yellow), Mekong and Salween rivers, which flow east through the plains.

Climate

China's wide latitudinal and altitudinal ranges lead to many extremes of climate. In the far south, the hot and humid summer lasts from April to September with average temperatures ranging from 26 °C to 31 °C, although in the Turpan Depression maximums of around 47 °C can occur. Winters (December to March) in the north are extremely cold, with a daily range in temperature from –6 °C to –18 °C, but sometimes dropping as low as –40 °C.

Rainfall reliability also varies, with the heavy average annual rainfall of 2,225 millimetres in Hong Kong to the dry 250–750 millimetres on the North China plains. Typhoons can hit the south-east coast between July and September.

Environment

China’s wildlife includes giant pandas, golden monkeys, snow leopards, Asian elephants, crested ibis, Chinese alligators, argali sheep, wild yaks, reindeer, moose, musk deer and South China tigers. Siberian tigers are endemic to China but population pressure threatens their survival. The last great tracts of forest are in the subarctic north-eastern region while the subtropical south is home to the country’s most diverse plant life, including bamboo, ginseng and angelica. The Jiuzhaigou Valley features a range of ecosystems, landscapes and wildlife and has World Heritage listing. 

Rapid industrialisation has led to major air and water pollution and rapidly falling water tables in the north. Recent water management plans aim to improve water use efficiency and reduce usage. Over the past 20 years, China’s reforestation programs and a ban on logging have increased forest cover from approximately 12% to more than 22%.

Population

About 51% of the total population live in urban areas. The most densely settled and cultivated areas are the coastal regions. Fewer people live in the harsh conditions of the north and west. The major cities are the capital Beijing (15.6million), Shanghai (20.2 million), Guangzhou (10.8 million), Shenzhen (10.6 million), Chongqing (9.9 million), Wuhan (9.1 million), Tianjin and Hong Kong. Rapid economic development in the cities attracts many rural people in search of employment; the urban population grows by 2.8% a year.

People

Culture and identity

The Han Chinese form the majority of the population but there are many linguistic differences within this group. They speak seven or eight mutually unintelligible dialects, each of which has many local sub-dialects. There are 56 ethnic groups, including the Zhuang, Uygur, Hui, Yi, Tibetan, Miao, Manchu, Mongol and Koreans. The Chinese Constitution specifies that all ethnic groups are equal and guarantees the lawful rights and interests of all.

Confucianism, with its strong tradition of social and political guidelines for interaction has influenced Chinese thinking and behaviour for many centuries. Many family duties, such as sons having a duty to support their ageing parents, are clearly defined.

Health

Population health has dramatically improved as reflected by the increase in average life expectancy from about 32 years in 1950 to 75 years in 2014. Access to safe water is at 92% but only 65% of the population have access to safe sanitation. Extensive health education programs, which focused on the reduction of pests and changing behaviours in the use of human waste as fertilisers, have almost eradicated diseases such as cholera, plague, typhoid, and scarlet fever. Less than 0.1% of the population is HIV-positive.

An effective three-tier system of providing increasing levels of care operated from the 1950s to the 1980s. At the village level there was a focus on preventive and primary care (performed by the ‘barefoot doctors’), at the township level there were health centres and at the county level there were major hospitals. Economic changes led to a user-pays system, which has severely reduced the provision of healthcare, particularly in rural areas. Strong pressure is exerted to limit families to one child. Boys are generally preferred, leading to a gender imbalance. The population is rapidly ageing.

Religion and beliefs

Freedom of religious belief is China’s official policy. The overwhelming majority of the Chinese population are non-religious, but Buddhism, Taoism, Islam and Christianity are practised by a considerable number of people.

Food and shelter

Chinese cuisine is extremely diverse but there is always a strong emphasis on freshness, flavour and texture. The cuisine can be divided into four regional categories: Northern or Beijing (with steamed bread and noodles as staples), Southern or Cantonese (lightly cooked meats and vegetables), Eastern or Shanghainese (‘red cooking’) and Western or Sichuan (spicy, with lots of chilli).

A wide variety of Chinese homes reflect the environmental and cultural conditions of their specific area. They include: the towering green tiled roof of a Hakka fortress; the graceful ‘swallow’s tail’ ridgeline of the south-eastern area; the circular tent of a Mongol yurt; the underground cave homes in the loessial uplands; the Beijing hutong, with four houses around a quadrangular courtyard; and the single room in a multi-storey apartment block in the urban areas.

Economy

Wealth and poverty

China is the second largest economy behind the USA. However, the benefits of the rapid economic growth have not been evenly spread as rural people, particularly ethnic minority groups living in the north and west, are being left far behind city workers with high-paying jobs. As uneducated rural people migrate to the cities in search of work, urban poverty is increasing. About 6% of the population is below the poverty line. The poorest 10% shares only about 1.7% of the wealth while the richest 10% owns 30%.

Education and work

School attendance is compulsory from ages 7 to 15. Urban schools are state funded. Rural schools rely mostly on their own resources so standards are lower, and few students attend secondary school. China’s adult population has had an average of 7.5 years of schooling; however, today’s children can expect to spend 11 years at school. The majority (95%; 97% male and 93% female) of the adult population can read.

Almost three-quarters of those aged over 15 are in the workforce, with 4.1% unemployment.

Industries and products

Agricultural products include rice, wheat, potatoes, corn, peanuts, tea, millet, barley, apples, cotton, oilseed, pork and fish.

China has a broad industry sector with products including mining and ore processing, iron, steel, coal, machinery, armaments, textiles, clothing, petroleum, cement, chemicals, fertilisers, footwear, toys, food processing, cars, consumer electronics, and telecommunications equipment, commercial space launch vehicles, and satellites.

Trade

China is the world’s largest exporter of goods. It exports machinery, textiles, clothing, footwear, iron and steel, and optical and medical equipment to Hong Kong (17%), US (17%), and Japan (7%). China imports machinery and equipment, oil and mineral fuels, optical and medical equipment, metal ores, and motor vehicles from South Korea (9%), Japan (8%), Taiwan (8%), US (8%) and Australia (5%).

Note: For economic purposes, Hong Kong is not treated as being part of China, although geographically it is.

Government

The Chinese Communist Party is the ruling party, led by Xi Jinping. The National People’s Congress is the highest organ of state power and is responsible for electing the President and committee members, revising and implementing the constitution and other functions of government.

Political controls remain tight and there are ongoing tensions over the control of Taiwan and Tibet. Human rights violations include arbitrary and lengthy detention and restrictions on freedom of speech, the press, assembly, association, religion, privacy, and women’s, children’s and workers’ rights.

Achievements and challenges

Rapid economic growth since the late 1970s has lifted 723 million people out of poverty but there are still over 110 million people living on less than US$1.25 a day.

Frequent natural disasters, which include typhoons, massive floods, earthquakes and droughts, have a severe impact on communities throughout China.

Environmental damage (air pollution, deforestation, erosion and falling water tables) as a result of the enormous population’s demands for food and services pose huge challenges for China.

Links with Australia

Chinese people began arriving in Australia from the early 19th century, fleeing civil disorder, famine and floods in southern China. They were also attracted to Australia by the discovery of gold. The 2011 census showed that the China-born population numbered 318,969 with about half living in New South Wales (156,034), followed by Victoria (93,896), Queensland (27 036) and Western Australia (16 693).

The importance of Australia’s diplomatic and trade relationship with China has increased as China has gained political and economic importance internationally. Chinese exports to Australia include clothing, computers, toys, sporting goods and telecommunications equipment. Australian exports to China include iron ore, wool, copper and coal.

Australia-China engagement in education, science, business and culture brings significant economic, social and cultural dividends to both countries and adds value to the bilateral relationship.