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Communications

Airports [time series]

100 total, 100 usable; 50 with permanent-surface runways; 10 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 20 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

Civil air [time series]

controlled by military

Roadways (Highways) [time series]

about 85,000 km total; 9,400 km paved, 48,700 km gravel or improved earth, 26,900 km unimproved earth

Waterways (Inland waterways) [time series]

about 17,702 km navigable; more than 5,149 km navigable at all times by vessels up to 1.8 meter draft

Merchant marine [time series]

89 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 400,430 GRT/643,877 DWT; includes 73 cargo 4 refrigerated cargo, 1 roll-on/roll-off, 8 petroleum tanker, 3 bulk; note - Vietnam owns 11 cargo ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 134,719 DWT under the registries of Panama and Malta

Pipelines [time series]

petroleum products 150 km

Ports [time series]

Da Nang, Haiphong, Ho Chi Minh City

Railways (Railroads) [time series]

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

Telecommunication systems (Telecommunications) [time series]

25 telephones per 10,000 persons (1991); broadcast stations - 16 AM, 1 FM, 2 TV; 2,300,000 TV sets; 6,000,000 radio receivers; 3 satellite earth stations

Defense Forces

Military and security forces (Branches) [time series]

Ground, Navy (including Naval Infantry), Air Force

Military expenditures (Defense expenditures) [time series]

exchange rate conversion - $NA, NA% of GNP

Manpower availability [time series]

males 15-49, 16,839,400; 10,739,128 fit for military service; 787,026 reach military age (17) annually

Economy

Agricultural products (Agriculture) [time series]

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 other 50%; since 1989 self-sufficient in food staple rice; fish catch of 943,100 metric tons (1989 est.)

Budget [time series]

revenues $551 million; expenditures $830 million, including capital expenditures of $58 million (1990)

Exchange rates (Currency) [time series]

new dong (plural - new dong); 1 new dong (D) = 100 xu

Economic aid [time series]

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

Electricity [time series]

3,300,000 kW capacity; 9,200 million kWh produced, 140 kWh per capita (1991)

Exchange rates [time series]

new dong (D) per US$1 - 11,100 (May 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

Exports [time series]

$1.8 billion (f.o.b., 1991) commodities: agricultural and handicraft products, coal, minerals, crude petroleum, ores, seafood partners: Japan, Singapore, Thailand, Eastern Europe, USSR

Debt - external (External debt) [time series]

$16.8 billion (1990 est.)

Fiscal year [time series]

calendar year

GNP [time series]

exchange rate conversion - $15 billion, per capita $220; real growth rate 2.5% (1991 est.)

Imports [time series]

$1.9 billion (c.i.f., 1991) commodities: petroleum products, steel products, railroad equipment, chemicals, medicines, raw cotton, fertilizer, grain partners: Japan, Singapore, Thailand, Eastern Europe, USSR

Industrial production growth rate (Industrial production) [time series]

growth rate -3.6% (1989); accounts for 30% of GNP

Industries [time series]

food processing, textiles, machine building, mining, cement, chemical fertilizer, glass, tires, oil, fishing

Inflation rate (consumer prices) [time series]

80% (1991 est.)

Economic overview (Overview) [time series]

This is a formerly centrally planned, developing economy with extensive government ownership and control of productive facilities. The economy is primarily agricultural; the sector employs about 70% of the labor force and accounts for half of GNP. Rice is the staple crop; substantial amounts of maize, sorghum, cassava, and sweet potatoes are also grown. The government permits sale of surplus grain on the open market. Most of the mineral resources are located in the north, including coal, which is an important export item. Oil was discovered off the southern coast in 1986 with production reaching 70,000 barrels per day in 1991 and expected to increase in the years ahead. Following the end of the war in 1975, heavy-handed government measures undermined efforts at an efficient merger of the agricultural resources of the south and the industrial resources of the north. The economy remains heavily dependent on foreign aid and has received assistance from UN agencies, France, Australia, Sweden, and Communist countries. Inflation, although down from recent triple-digit levels, is still a major weakness and is showing signs of accelerating upwards again. Per capita output is among the world's lowest. Since late 1986 the government has sponsored a broad reform program that seeks to turn more economic activity over to the private sector.

Unemployment rate [time series]

30% (1991 est.)

Geography

Climate [time series]

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

Coastline [time series]

3,444 km; excludes islands

Area - comparative (Comparative area) [time series]

slightly larger than New Mexico

Disputes - international (Disputes) [time series]

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

Environment - current issues (Environment) [time series]

occasional typhoons (May to January) with extensive flooding

Area (Land area) [time series]

325,360

Land boundaries [time series]

3,818 km total; Cambodia 982 km, China 1,281 km, Laos 1,555 km

Land use [time series]

arable land 22%; permanent crops 2%; meadows and pastures 1%; forest and woodland 40%; other 35%; includes irrigated 5%

Maritime claims [time series]

Contiguous zone: 24 nm Continental shelf: edge of continental margin or 200 nm Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm Territorial sea: 12 nm

Natural resources [time series]

phosphates, coal, manganese, bauxite, chromate, offshore oil deposits, forests

Terrain [time series]

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

Area (Total area) [time series]

329,560 km2

Government

Administrative divisions [time series]

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 Las, Dong Nai, Dong Tay, 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; note - diacritical marks are not included

Capital [time series]

Hanoi

Political parties (Communists) [time series]

nearly 2 million

Constitution [time series]

18 December 1980; new Constitution to be approved Spring 1992

Diplomatic representation in the US (Diplomatic representation) [time series]

none

Executive branch (Elections) [time series]

National Assembly: last held 19 April 1987 (next to be held 19 July 1992); results - VCP is the only party; seats - (496 total) VCP or VCP-approved 496; note - number of seats under new government 395

Executive branch [time series]

president, prime minister, deputy prime minister, Council of Ministers

Flag [time series]

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

Independence [time series]

2 September 1945 (from France)

Judicial branch [time series]

Supreme People's Court

Executive branch (Leaders) [time series]

Chief of State: President Vo Chi CONG (since 18 June 1987) Head of Government: Prime Minister Vo Van KIET (since 9 August 1991); Deputy Prime Minister Phan Van KHAI (since 10 August 1991)

Legal system [time series]

based on Communist legal theory and French civil law system

Legislative branch [time series]

unicameral National Assembly (Quoc-Hoi)

Country name (Long-form name) [time series]

Socialist Republic of Vietnam; abbreviated SRV

International organization participation (Member of) [time series]

ACCT, AsDB, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBEC, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IIB, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, IOC, ISO, ITU, LORCS, NAM, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

National holiday [time series]

Independence Day, 2 September (1945)

Political parties (Political parties and leaders) [time series]

only party - Vietnam Communist Party (VCP), DO MUOI

Suffrage [time series]

universal at age 18

Government type (Type) [time series]

Communist state

People

Birth rate [time series]

29 births/1,000 population (1992)

Death rate [time series]

8 deaths/1,000 population (1992)

Ethnic groups (Ethnic divisions) [time series]

predominantly Vietnamese 85-90%; Chinese 3%; ethnic minorities include Muong, Thai, Meo, Khmer, Man, Cham; other mountain tribes

Infant mortality rate [time series]

47 deaths/1,000 live births (1992)

Labor force [time series]

32.7 million; agricultural 65%, industrial and service 35% (1990 est.)

Languages [time series]

Vietnamese (official), French, Chinese, English, Khmer, tribal languages (Mon-Khmer and Malayo-Polynesian)

Life expectancy at birth [time series]

63 years male, 67 years female (1992)

Literacy [time series]

88% (male 92%, female 84%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)

Nationality [time series]

noun - Vietnamese (singular and plural); adjective - Vietnamese

Net migration rate [time series]

-1 migrant/1,000 population (1992)

Organized labor [time series]

reportedly over 90% of wage and salary earners are members of the Vietnam Federation of Trade Unions (VFTU)

Population [time series]

68,964,018 (July 1992), growth rate 2.0% (1992)

Religions [time series]

Buddhist, Confucian, Taoist, Roman Catholic, indigenous beliefs, Islamic, Protestant

Total fertility rate [time series]

3.6 children born/woman (1992)