The conquest of Vietnam by France began in 1858 and was completed by 1884. It became part of French Indochina in 1887. Vietnam declared independence after World War II, but France continued to rule until its 1954 defeat by Communist forces under Ho Chi MINH. Under the Geneva Accords of 1954, Vietnam was divided into the Communist North and anti-Communist South. US economic and military aid to South Vietnam grew through the 1960s in an attempt to bolster the government, but US armed forces were withdrawn following a cease-fire agreement in 1973. Two years later, North Vietnamese forces overran the South reuniting the country under Communist rule. Despite the return of peace, for over a decade the country experienced little economic growth because of conservative leadership policies. However, since the enactment of Vietnam's "doi moi" (renovation) policy in 1986, Vietnamese authorities have committed to increased economic liberalization and enacted structural reforms needed to modernize the economy and to produce more competitive, export-driven industries. The country continues to experience protests from various groups - such as the Protestant Montagnard ethnic minority population of the Central Highlands and the Hoa Hao Buddhists in southern Vietnam over religious persecution. Montagnard grievances also include the loss of land to Vietnamese settlers.

Southeastern Asia, bordering the Gulf of Thailand, Gulf of Tonkin, and South China Sea, alongside China, Laos, and Cambodia

16 00 N, 106 00 E

Southeast Asia

total: 329,560 sq km
land: 325,360 sq km
water: 4,200 sq km

slightly larger than New Mexico

total: 4,639 km
border countries: Cambodia 1,228 km, China 1,281 km, Laos 2,130 km

3,444 km (excludes islands)

territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin

tropical in south; monsoonal in north with hot, rainy season (May to September) and warm, dry season (October to March)

low, flat delta in south and north; central highlands; hilly, mountainous in far north and northwest

lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Fan Si Pan 3,144 m

phosphates, coal, manganese, bauxite, chromate, offshore oil and gas deposits, forests, hydropower

arable land: 20.14%
permanent crops: 6.93%
other: 72.93% (2005)

30,000 sq km (2003)

occasional typhoons (May to January) with extensive flooding, especially in the Mekong River delta

logging and slash-and-burn agricultural practices contribute to deforestation and soil degradation; water pollution and overfishing threaten marine life populations; groundwater contamination limits potable water supply; growing urban industrialization and population migration are rapidly degrading environment in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City

party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

extending 1,650 km north to south, the country is only 50 km across at its narrowest point

84,402,966 (July 2006 est.)

0-14 years: 27% (male 11,826,457/female 10,983,069)
15-64 years: 67.1% (male 28,055,941/female 28,614,553)
65 years and over: 5.8% (male 1,924,562/female 2,998,384) (2006 est.)

total: 25.9 years
male: 24.8 years
female: 27.1 years (2006 est.)

1.02% (2006 est.)

16.86 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

6.22 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)

-0.42 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)

at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.08 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.64 male(s)/female
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2006 est.)

total: 25.14 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 25.54 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 24.72 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

total population: 70.85 years
male: 68.05 years
female: 73.85 years (2006 est.)

1.91 children born/woman (2006 est.)

0.4% (2003 est.)

220,000 (2003 est.)

9,000 (2003 est.)

degree of risk: high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne diseases: dengue fever, malaria, Japanese encephalitis, and plague are high risks in some locations
animal contact disease: rabies
water contact disease: leptospirosis
note: at present, H5N1 avian influenza poses a minimal risk; during outbreaks among birds, rare cases could occur among US personnel who have close contact with infected birds or poultry (2005)

noun: Vietnamese (singular and plural)
adjective: Vietnamese

Kinh (Viet) 86.2%, Tay 1.9%, Thai 1.7%, Muong 1.5%, Khome 1.4%, Hoa 1.1%, Nun 1.1%, Hmong 1%, others 4.1% (1999 census)

Buddhist 9.3%, Catholic 6.7%, Hoa Hao 1.5%, Cao Dai 1.1%, Protestant 0.5%, Muslim 0.1%, none 80.8% (1999 census)

Vietnamese (official), English (increasingly favored as a second language), some French, Chinese, and Khmer; mountain area languages (Mon-Khmer and Malayo-Polynesian)

definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 90.3%
male: 93.9%
female: 86.9% (2002)

conventional long form: Socialist Republic of Vietnam
conventional short form: Vietnam
local long form: Cong Hoa Xa Hoi Chu Nghia Viet Nam
local short form: Viet Nam
abbreviation: SRV

Communist state

Hanoi

59 provinces (tinh, singular and plural) and 5 municipalities (thu do, singular and plural)
provinces: An Giang, Bac Giang, Bac Kan, Bac Lieu, Bac Ninh, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Ben Tre, Binh Dinh, Binh Duong, Binh Phuoc, Binh Thuan, Ca Mau, Cao Bang, Dac Lak, Dac Nong, Dien Bien, Dong Nai, Dong Thap, Gia Lai, Ha Giang, Ha Nam, Ha Tay, Ha Tinh, Hai Duong, Hau Giang, Hoa Binh, Hung Yen, Khanh Hoa, Kien Giang, Kon Tum, Lai Chau, Lam Dong, Lang Son, Lao Cai, Long An, Nam Dinh, Nghe An, Ninh Binh, Ninh Thuan, Phu Tho, Phu Yen, Quang Binh, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai, Quang Ninh, Quang Tri, Soc Trang, Son La, Tay Ninh, Thai Binh, Thai Nguyen, Thanh Hoa, Thua Thien-Hue, Tien Giang, Tra Vinh, Tuyen Quang, Vinh Long, Vinh Phuc, Yen Bai
municipalities: Can Tho, Da Nang, Hai Phong, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh

2 September 1945 (from France)

Independence Day, 2 September (1945)

15 April 1992

based on communist legal theory and French civil law system

18 years of age; universal

chief of state: President Tran Duc LUONG (since 24 September 1997)
head of government: Prime Minister Phan Van KHAI (since 25 September 1997); First Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Tan DUNG (since 29 September 1997); Deputy Prime Ministers Vu KHOAN (8 August 2002) and Pham Gia KHIEM (since 29 September 1997)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by president based on proposal of prime minister and ratification of National Assembly
elections: president elected by the National Assembly from among its members for a five-year term; election last held 25 July 2002 (next to be held when National Assembly meets following legislative elections in 2007); prime minister appointed by the president from among the members of the National Assembly; deputy prime ministers appointed by the prime minister
election results: Tran Duc LUONG elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - NA%

unicameral National Assembly or Quoc-Hoi (498 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 19 May 2002 (next to be held 2007)
election results: percent of vote by party - CPV 90%, other 10% (the 10% are not CPV members but are approved by the CPV to stand for election); seats by party - CPV 447, CPV-approved 51

Supreme People's Court (chief justice is elected for a five-year term by the National Assembly on the recommendation of the president)

only party - Communist Party of Vietnam or CPV [Nong Duc MANH]

none

ACCT (observer), APEC, APT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, EAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer)

chief of mission: Ambassador Nguyen Tam CHIEN
chancery: 1233 20th Street NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC 20036
telephone: [1] (202) 861-0737
FAX: [1] (202) 861-0917
consulate(s) general: San Francisco

chief of mission: Ambassador Michael W. MARINE
embassy: 7 Lang Ha Street, Ba Dinh District, Hanoi
mailing address: PSC 461, Box 400, FPO AP 96521-0002
telephone: [84] (4) 772-1500
FAX: [84] (4) 772-1510
consulate(s) general: Ho Chi Minh City

red with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center

Vietnam is a densely-populated, developing country that in the last 30 years has had to recover from the ravages of war, the loss of financial support from the old Soviet Bloc, and the rigidities of a centrally-planned economy. Substantial progress was achieved from 1986 to 1997 in moving forward from an extremely low level of development and significantly reducing poverty. Growth averaged around 9% per year from 1993 to 1997. The 1997 Asian financial crisis highlighted the problems in the Vietnamese economy and temporarily allowed opponents of reform to slow progress toward a market-oriented economy. GDP growth averaged 6.8% per year from 1997 to 2004 even against the background of the Asian financial crisis and a global recession, and growth hit 8% in 2005. Since 2001, however, Vietnamese authorities have reaffirmed their commitment to economic liberalization and international integration. They have moved to implement the structural reforms needed to modernize the economy and to produce more competitive, export-driven industries. Vietnam's membership in the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) and entry into force of the US-Vietnam Bilateral Trade Agreement in December 2001 have led to even more rapid changes in Vietnam's trade and economic regime. Vietnam's exports to the US doubled in 2002 and again in 2003. Vietnam hopes to become a member of the WTO in 2006. Among other benefits, accession would allow Vietnam to take advantage of the phase out of the Agreement on Textiles and Clothing, which eliminated quotas on textiles and clothing for WTO partners on 1 January 2005. Vietnam is working to promote job creation to keep up with the country's high population growth rate. However, high levels of inflation have prompted Vietnamese authorities to tighten monetary and fiscal policies.

$253.2 billion (2005 est.)

$44.66 billion (2005 est.)

8.4% (2005 est.)

$3,000 (2005 est.)

agriculture: 20.9%
industry: 41%
services: 38.1% (2005 est.)

44.39 million (2005 est.)

agriculture: 56.8%
industry: 37%
services: 6.2% (July 2005)

5.5% (2005 est.)

19.5% (2004 est.)

lowest 10%: 3.6%
highest 10%: 29.9% (1998)

36.1 (1998)

8.4% (2005 est.)

38.7% of GDP (2005 est.)

revenues: $11.64 billion
expenditures: $12.95 billion; including capital expenditures of $1.8 billion (2005 est.)

75.5% of GDP (2005 est.)

paddy rice, coffee, rubber, cotton, tea, pepper, soybeans, cashews, sugar cane, peanuts, bananas; poultry; fish, seafood

food processing, garments, shoes, machine-building; mining, coal, steel; cement, chemical fertilizer, glass, tires, oil, paper

17.2% (2005 est.)

46.2 billion kWh (2004)

fossil fuel: 43.7%
hydro: 56.3%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (2001)

52 billion kWh (2004)

NA kWh

NA kWh

400,000 bbl/day (2005 est.)

216,000 bbl/day (2003 est.)

NA bbl/day

NA bbl/day

600 million bbl (2005 est.)

6.342 billion cu m (2005 est.)

6.342 billion cu m (2005 est.)

0 cu m (2005 est.)

NA cu m

192.6 billion cu m (2005)

-$1.695 billion (2005 est.)

$32.23 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)

crude oil, marine products, rice, coffee, rubber, tea, garments, shoes

US 20.1%, Japan 13.6%, China 9%, Australia 7%, Germany 5.9%, Singapore 4.8%, UK 4.6% (2004)

$36.88 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)

machinery and equipment, petroleum products, fertilizer, steel products, raw cotton, grain, cement, motorcycles

China 13.7%, Taiwan 11.3%, South Korea 10.8%, Japan 10.5%, Singapore 10.5%, Thailand 6.2%, Hong Kong 4% (2004)

$7.503 billion (2005 est.)

$19.17 billion (2005 est.)

$2.8 billion in credits and grants pledged by international donors for 2000 (2004)

dong (VND)

VND

dong per US dollar - 15,746 (2005), (2004), 15,510 (2003), 15,280 (2002), 14,725 (2001)

calendar year

10,124,900 (2004)

4.96 million (2004)

general assessment: Vietnam is putting considerable effort into modernization and expansion of its telecommunication system, but its performance continues to lag behind that of its more modern neighbors
domestic: all provincial exchanges are digitalized and connected to Hanoi, Da Nang, and Ho Chi Minh City by fiber-optic cable or microwave radio relay networks; main lines have been substantially increased, and the use of mobile telephones is growing rapidly
international: country code - 84; satellite earth stations - 2 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region)

AM 65, FM 7, shortwave 29 (1999)

8.2 million (1997)

6 (plus 61 provincial TV stations) (2006)

3.57 million (1997)

.vn

3,611 (2005)

5 (2000)

5.87 million (2005)

28 (2005)

total: 23
over 3,047 m: 7
2,438 to 3,047 m: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 10
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2005)

total: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 2
under 914 m: 2 (2005)

condensate/gas 432 km; gas 210 km; oil 3 km; refined products 206 km (2004)

total: 2,600 km
standard gauge: 178 km 1.435-m gauge
narrow gauge: 2,169 km 1.000-m gauge
dual gauge: 253 km three-rail track combining 1.435 m and 1.000-m gauges (2004)

total: 215,628 km (2000)

17,702 km (5,000 km navigable by vessels up to 1.8 m draft) (2005)

total: 235 ships (1000 GRT or over) 1,290,526 GRT/1,961,403 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 21, cargo 176, chemical tanker 4, container 4, liquefied gas 5, petroleum tanker 21, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 1, specialized tanker 1
foreign-owned: 1 (Denmark 1)
registered in other countries: 12 (Cyprus 1, Honduras 1, Mongolia 7, Panama 2, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1) (2005)

Hai Phong, Ho Chi Minh City

People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN): Ground Forces, People's Navy Command (including Naval Infantry), Air and Air Defense Force, Coast Guard

18 years of age for compulsory military service; conscript service obligation - two years (three-four years in the navy) (2004)

males age 18-49: 21,341,813
females age 18-49: 21,430,808 (2005 est.)

males age 18-49: 16,032,358
females age 18-49: 17,921,241 (2005 est.)

males age 18-49: 915,572
females age 18-49: 864,161 (2005 est.)

$650 million (FY98)

2.5% (FY98)

southeast Asian states have enhanced border surveillance to check the spread of avian flu; Cambodia and Laos protest Vietnamese squatters and armed encroachments along border; after years of Cambodia claiming Vietnam had moved or destroyed boundary markers, in 2005, after much domestic debate, Cambodia ratified an agreement with Vietnam that settled all but a small portion of the land boundary; establishment of a maritime boundary with Cambodia is hampered by unresolved dispute over offshore islands; in 2004, Laotian-Vietnamese boundary commission agrees to erect missing markers in two adjoining provinces; demarcation of the China-Vietnam boundary proceeds slowly and although the maritime boundary delimitation and fisheries agreements were ratified in June 2004, implementation has been delayed; China occupies Paracel Islands also claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan; involved in complex dispute with China, Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, and possibly Brunei over the Spratly Islands; the 2002 "Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea" has eased tensions but falls short of a legally binding "code of conduct" desired by several of the disputants; Vietnam continues to expand construction of facilities in the Spratly Islands; in March 2005, the national oil companies of China, the Philippines, and Vietnam signed a joint accord to conduct marine seismic activities in the Spratly Islands

minor producer of opium poppy; probable minor transit point for Southeast Asian heroin; government continues to face domestic opium/heroin/methamphetamine addiction problems despite longstanding crackdowns