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NAVIGATION
Socialist Republic of Vietnam
Cong Hoa Xa Hoi Chu Nghia Viet Nam
GOVERNMENT
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Country name:
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conventional long form: Socialist Republic of Vietnam
conventional short form: Vietnam local short form: Viet Nam abbreviation: SRV local long form: Cong Hoa Xa Hoi Chu Nghia Viet Nam |
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Government type:
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Communist state |
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Capital:
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Hanoi |
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Administrative divisions:
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58 provinces (tinh, singular and plural), and 3 municipalities* (thu do, singular and plural); 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, Can Tho, Cao Bang, Dac Lak, Da Nang, Dong Nai, Dong Thap, Gia Lai, Ha Giang, Hai Duong, Hai Phong*, Ha Nam, Ha Noi*, Ha Tay, Ha Tinh, Hoa Binh, Ho Chi Minh*, 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 |
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Independence:
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2 September 1945 (from France) |
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National holiday:
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Independence Day, 2 September (1945) |
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Constitution:
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15 April 1992 |
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Legal system:
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based on communist legal theory and French civil law system |
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Suffrage:
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18 years of age; universal |
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Executive branch:
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chief of state: President Tran Duc LUONG (since 24 September 1997)
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 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 (since NA) and Pham Gia KHIEM (since 29 September 1997) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the proposal of the prime minister and ratification of the National Assembly election results: Tran Duc LUONG elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - NA% |
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Legislative branch:
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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 |
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Judicial branch:
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Supreme People's Court (chief justice is elected for a five-year term by the National Assembly on the recommendation of the president) |
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Political parties and leaders:
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only party - Communist Party of Vietnam or CPV [Nong Duc MANH, general secretary] |
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Political pressure groups and leaders:
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none |
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International organization participation:
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ACCT, APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) |
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Diplomatic representation in the US:
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chief of mission: Ambassador Nguyen Tam CHIEN
consulate(s) general: San Francisco FAX: [1] (202) 861-0917 telephone: [1] (202) 861-0737 chancery: 1233 20th Street NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC 20036 |
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Diplomatic representation from the US:
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chief of mission: Ambassador Raymond F. BURGHARDT
embassy: 7 Lang Ha Road, 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 |
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Flag description:
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red with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center |
ECONOMY
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Economy - overview:
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Vietnam is a poor, densely-populated country that 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 1996 in moving forward from an extremely low starting point - growth averaged around 9% per year from 1993 to 1997. The 1997 Asian financial crisis highlighted the problems in the Vietnamese economy but, rather than prompting reform, reaffirmed the government's belief that shifting to a market-oriented economy would lead to disaster. GDP growth of 8.5% in 1997 fell to 6% in 1998 and 5% in 1999. Growth then rose to 6% TO 7% in 200002 even against the background of global recession. These numbers mask some major difficulties in economic performance. Many domestic industries, including coal, cement, steel, and paper, have reported large stockpiles of inventory and tough competition from more efficient foreign producers. Meanwhile, Vietnamese authorities have moved to implement the structural reforms needed to modernize the economy and to produce more competitive, export-driven industries. The US-Vietnam Bilateral Trade Agreement entered into force near the end of 2001 and is expected to significantly increase Vietnam's exports to the US. The US is assisting Vietnam with implementing the legal and structural reforms called for in the agreement. |
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GDP:
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purchasing power parity - $183 billion (2002 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate:
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6% (2002 est.) |
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GDP - per capita:
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purchasing power parity - $2,250 (2002 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture: 24%
industry: 37% services: 39% (2001 est.) |
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Population below poverty line:
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37% (1998 est.) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share:
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lowest 10%: 3.6%
highest 10%: 29.9% (1998) |
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Distribution of family income - Gini index:
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36.1 (1998) |
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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3.9% (2002 est.) |
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Labor force:
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38.2 million (1998 est.) |
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Labor force - by occupation:
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agriculture 63%, industry and services 37% (2000) |
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Unemployment rate:
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25% (1995 est.) |
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Budget:
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revenues: $5.3 billion
expenditures: $5.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.8 billion (1999 est.) |
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Industries:
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food processing, garments, shoes, machine-building, mining, cement, chemical fertilizer, glass, tires, oil, coal, steel, paper |
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Industrial production growth rate:
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10.2% (2002 est.) |
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Electricity - production:
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29.8 billion kWh (2001) |
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Electricity - production by source:
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fossil fuel: 43.7%
hydro: 56.3% other: 0% (2001) nuclear: 0% |
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Electricity - consumption:
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27.71 billion kWh (2001) |
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Electricity - exports:
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0 kWh (2001) |
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Electricity - imports:
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0 kWh (2001) |
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Oil - production:
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356,700 bbl/day (2001 est.) |
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Oil - consumption:
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185,000 bbl/day (2001 est.) |
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Oil - exports:
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NA |
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Oil - imports:
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NA |
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Oil - proved reserves:
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1.4 billion bbl (January 2002 est.) |
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Natural gas - proved reserves:
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192.6 billion cu m (January 2002 est.) |
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Agriculture - products:
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paddy rice, corn, potatoes, rubber, soybeans, coffee, tea, bananas, sugar; poultry, pigs; fish |
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Exports:
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$16.5 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) |
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Exports - commodities:
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crude oil, marine products, rice, coffee, rubber, tea, garments, shoes |
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Exports - partners:
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US 15.0%, Japan 14.8%, Australia 7.7%, Germany 6.7%, China 6.1%, Singapore 5.6% (2002) |
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Imports:
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$16.8 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.) |
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Imports - commodities:
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machinery and equipment, petroleum products, fertilizer, steel products, raw cotton, grain, cement, motorcycles |
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Imports - partners:
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Singapore 12.7%, Japan 12.7%, South Korea 11.5%, Taiwan 11.4%, China 11.4%, Thailand 5.8% (2002) |
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Debt - external:
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$14.1 billion (2001) |
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Economic aid - recipient:
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$2.1 billion in credits and grants pledged by international donors for 2000 |
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Currency:
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dong (VND) |
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Currency code:
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VND |
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Exchange rates:
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dong per US dollar - 15,325.8 (2002), 14,725.2 (2001), 14,167.7 (2000), 13,943.2 (1999), 13,268 (1998) |
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Fiscal year:
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calendar year |