For more information, see the listing at the end of this page
Location:
Southeast Asia, bordering the South China Sea, between Laos and the
Philippines
Map references:
Asia, Southeast Asia, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
329,560 km2
land area:
325,360 km2
comparative area:
slightly larger than New Mexico
Land boundaries:
total 3,818 km, Cambodia 982 km, China 1,281 km, Laos 1,555 km
Coastline:
3,444 km (excludes islands)
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone:
24 nm
continental shelf:
200 nm or the edge of continental margin
exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
territorial sea:
12 nm
International disputes:
maritime boundary with Cambodia not defined; involved in a complex dispute
over the Spratly Islands with China, Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, and
possibly Brunei; unresolved maritime boundary with Thailand; maritime
boundary dispute with China in the Gulf of Tonkin; Paracel Islands occupied
by China but claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan
Climate:
tropical in south; monsoonal in north with hot, rainy season (mid-May to
mid-September) and warm, dry season (mid-October to mid-March)
Terrain:
low, flat delta in south and north; central highlands; hilly, mountainous in
far north and northwest
Natural resources:
phosphates, coal, manganese, bauxite, chromate, offshore oil deposits,
forests
Land use:
arable land:
22%
permanent crops:
2%
meadows and pastures:
1%
forest and woodland:
40%
other:
35%
Irrigated land:
18,300 km2 (1989 est.)
Environment:
occasional typhoons (May to January) with extensive flooding
Vietnam, People
Population:
71,787,608 (July 1993 est.)
Population growth rate:
1.85% (1993 est.)
Birth rate:
27.99 births/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Death rate:
7.92 deaths/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Net migration rate:
-1.56 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
46.4 deaths/1,000 live births (1993 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
65.1 years
male:
63.08 years
female:
67.25 years (1993 est.)
Total fertility rate:
3.45 children born/woman (1993 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
Vietnamese (singular and plural)
adjective:
Vietnamese
Ethnic divisions:
Vietnamese 85-90%, Chinese 3%, Muong, Thai, Meo, Khmer, Man, Cham
Religions:
Buddhist, Taoist, Roman Catholic, indigenous beliefs, Islamic, Protestant
Languages:
Vietnamese (official), French, Chinese, English, Khmer, tribal languages
(Mon-Khmer and Malayo-Polynesian)
Literacy:
age 15 and over can read and write (1990)
total population:
88%
male:
92%
female:
84%
Labor force:
32.7 million
by occupation:
agricultural 65%, industrial and service 35% (1990 est.)
Vietnam, Government
Names:
conventional long form:
Socialist Republic of Vietnam
conventional short form:
Vietnam local long form:
Cong Hoa Chu Nghia Viet Nam
local short form:
Viet Nam
Abbreviation:
SRV
Digraph:
VM
Type:
Communist state
Capital:
Hanoi
Administrative divisions:
50 provinces (tinh, singular and plural), 3 municipalities* (thanh pho,, singular and plural);
An Giang, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Bac Thai, Ben Tre, Binh
Dinh, Binh Thuan, Can Tho, Cao Bang, Dac Lac, Dong Nai, Dong Thap, Gia Lai,
Ha Bac, Ha Giang, Ha Noi*, Ha Tay, Ha Tinh, Hai Hung, Hai Phong*, Ho Chi, Minh*, Hoa Binh,
Khanh, Hoa, Kien Giang, Kon Tum, Lai Chau, Lam Dong, Lang
Son, Lao Cai, Long An, Minh Hai, Nam Ha, Nghe An, Ninh Binh, Ninh Thuan, Phu
Yen, Quang Binh, Quang Nam-Da Nang, Quang Ngai, Quang Ninh, Quang Tri, Soc
Trang, Son La, Song Be, Tay Ninh, Thai Binh, Thanh Hoa, Thua Thien, Tien
Giang, Tra Vinh, Tuyen Quang, Vinh Long, Vinh Phu, Yen Bai
Independence:
2 September 1945 (from France)
Constitution:
NA April 1992
Legal system:
based on Communist legal theory and French civil law system
National holiday:
Independence Day, 2 September (1945)
Political parties and leaders:
only party - Vietnam Communist Party (VCP), DO MUOI, general secretary
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Elections:
National Assembly:
last held 19 July 1992 (next to be held NA July 1997); results - VCP is the
only party; seats - (395 total) VCP or VCP-approved 395
Executive branch:
president, prime minister, three deputy prime ministers
Legislative branch:
unicameral National Assembly (Quoc-Hoi)
Judicial branch:
Supreme People's Court
Leaders:
Chief of State:
President Le Duc ANH (since 23 September 1992)
Head of Government:
Prime Minister Vo Van KIET (since 9 August 1991); First Deputy Prime
Minister Phan Van KHAI (since 10 August 1991); Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen
KHANH (since NA February 1987); Deputy Prime Minister Tran Duc LUONG (since
NA February 1987)
Vietnam, Government
Member of:
ACCT, AsDB, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF,
IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LORCS, NAM, UN,
UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in US:
none
US diplomatic representation:
none
Flag:
red with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center
Vietnam, Economy
Overview:
Vietnam has made significant progress in recent years moving away from the
planned economic model and toward a more effective market-based economic
system. Most prices are now fully decontrolled and the Vietnamese currency
has been effectively devalued and floated at world market rates. In
addition, the scope for private sector activity has been expanded, primarily
through decollectivization of the agricultural sector and introduction of
laws giving legal recognition to private business. Despite such positive
indicators, the country's economic turnaround remains tenuous. Nearly
three-quarters of export earnings are generated by only two commodities,
rice and crude oil. Meanwhile, industrial production stagnates, burdened by
uncompetitive state-owned enterprises the government is unwilling or unable
to privatize. Unemployment looms as the most serious problem with over 25%
of the workforce without jobs and population growth swelling the ranks of
the unemployed yearly.
National product:
GNP - exchange rate conversion - $16 billion (1992 est.)
National product real growth rate:
7.4% (1992 est.)
National product per capita:
$230 (1992 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
15%-20% (1992 est.)
Unemployment rate:
25% (1992 est.)
Budget:
revenues $1.7 billion; expenditures $1.9 billion, including capital
expenditures of $NA (1990)
Exports:
$2.3 billion (f.o.b., 1992)
commodities:
agricultural and handicraft products, coal, minerals, crude oil, ores,
seafood
partners:
Japan, Singapore, Thailand, Hong Kong, Taiwan
Imports:
$1.9 billion (c.i.f., 1992)
commodities:
petroleum products, steel products, railroad equipment, chemicals,
medicines, raw cotton, fertilizer, grain
partners:
Japan, Singapore, Thailand
External debt:
$16.8 billion (1990 est.)
Industrial production:
growth rate 15% (1992); accounts for 30% of GNP
Electricity:
3,300,000 kW capacity; 9,000 million kWh produced, 130 kWh per capita (1992)
Industries:
food processing, textiles, machine building, mining, cement, chemical
fertilizer, glass, tires, oil
Agriculture:
accounts for half of GNP; paddy rice, corn, potatoes make up 50% of farm
output; commercial crops (rubber, soybeans, coffee, tea, bananas) and animal
products 50%; since 1989 self-sufficient in food staple rice; fish catch of
943,100 metric tons (1989 est.)
Vietnam, >Economy
Economic aid:
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-74), $3.1 billion; Western (non-US)
countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $2.9 billion; OPEC
bilateral aid (1979-89), $61 million; Communist countries (1970-89), $12.0
billion
Currency:
1 new dong (D) = 100 xu
Exchange rates:
new dong (D) per US$1 - 10,800 (November 1992), 8,100 (July 1991), 7,280
(December 1990), 3,996 (March 1990), 2,047 (1988), 225 (1987); note -
1985-89 figures are end of year
Fiscal year:
calendar year
Vietnam, Communications
Railroads:
3,059 km total; 2,454 1.000-meter gauge, 151 km 1.435-meter (standard)
gauge, 230 km dual gauge (three rails), and 224 km not restored to service
after war damage
Highways:
85,000 km total; 9,400 km paved, 48,700 km gravel or improved earth, 26,900
km unimproved earth (est.)
Inland waterways:
17,702 km navigable; more than 5,149 km navigable at all times by vessels up
to 1.8 meter draft
Pipelines:
petroleum products 150 km
Ports:
Da Nang, Haiphong, Ho Chi Minh City
Merchant marine:
99 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 460,712 GRT/739,246 DWT; includes 84
cargo, 3 refrigerated cargo, 1 roll-on/roll-off, 8 oil tanker, 3 bulk
Airports:
total:
100
usable:
100
with permanent-surface runways:
50
with runways over 3,659 m:
0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
10
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
20
Telecommunications:
the inadequacies of the obsolete switching equipment and cable system is a
serious constraint on the business sector and on economic growth, and
restricts access to the international links that Vietnam has established
with most major countries; the telephone system is not generally available
for private use (25 telephones for each 10,000 persons); 3 satellite earth
stations; broadcast stations - NA AM, 288 FM; 36 (77 repeaters) TV; about
2,500,000 TV receivers and 7,000,000 radio receivers in use (1991)
Vietnam, Defense Forces
Branches:
Ground, Navy (including Naval Infantry), Air Force
Manpower availability:
males age 15-49 17,835,536; fit for military service 11,338,880; reach
military age (17) annually 771,792 (1993 est.)
Defense expenditures:
exchange rate conversion - $NA, NA% of GNP
Appendices to CIA World Factbook
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