Background: France occupied all of Vietnam in 1884. After World War II, independence was declared, but France remained in power until 1954, when it was defeated by communist forces under the leadership of Ho Chi Minh (HO Chi Minn), who took control of the northern part countries. The United States provided increasing economic and military assistance to South Vietnam in the 1960s. in an attempt to support the government, but the US military was withdrawn after a ceasefire was signed in 1973. Two years later, North Vietnamese military forces devastated the south of the country. Rebuilding the shattered country’s economy proved difficult as aging Communist Party leaders reluctantly began the reforms needed to develop a free market.
Geography
Location: Southeast Asia, coast of the Gulf of Thailand, Gulf of Tonkin, South China Sea, borders on China, Laos and Cambodia.
Geographical coordinates: 16° 00′ N. latitude, 106° 00′ E
Reference map: Southeast Asia.
Area: total: 329,560 km2; land surface area: 325,360 km2; water surface area: 4,200 km2
Comparative area: slightly larger than New Mexico.
Land borders: total: 4,639 km; with neighboring states: with Cambodia 1,228 km, with China 1,281 km, with Laos 2,130 km.
Coastline: 3,444 km (including islands).
Maritime claims: neutral waters: 24 nautical miles; continental shelf: 200 nautical miles or to the outer limits of the continent; exclusive economic zone: 200 nautical miles; territorial waters: 12 nautical miles.
Climate: tropical in the south; monsoonal in the north, with a hot rainy season (mid-May to mid-September) and a warm dry season (mid-October to mid-March).
Terrain: hilly, mountainous in the far north and northwest, low, flat deltas in the south and north; central heights.
Maximum and minimum heights: lowest point: South China Sea 0 m; highest point: Mount Ngoc Linh 3,143 m.
Natural resources: phosphate, coal, manganese, bauxite, chromium, offshore oil and gas reserves, timber, hydropower.
Land use: arable land: 17%; cultivated land: 4%; pastures: 1%; forests and plantations: 30%; others: 48% (1993 est.).
Irrigated land: 18,600 km2 (1993 est.).
Natural Hazards: Typhoons occur (May to January) with extensive flooding.
Current environmental issues: logging and slash-and-burn agriculture lead to deforestation and soil degradation; water pollution and overfishing threaten marine animal populations; groundwater pollution limits fresh water supplies; Growing industrialization and urban migration are causing rapid environmental degradation in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.
International agreements on environmental protection: member: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Change, Hazardous Waste, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands; signed but not ratified: Kyoto Protocol, Nuclear Test Ban.
Note to the section “Geography”:
Population
Population: 79,939,014 (July 2001 est.).
Age structure: under 14: 32.13% (male 13,266,585; female 12,415,384); 15 to 64 years old: 62.44% (male 24,357,343; female 25,556,187); over 65: 5.43% (male 1,722,094; female 2,621,421) (2001 est.).
Population growth: 1.45% (2000 est.).
Birth rate: 21.23 newborns / 1000 people. (2001 est.).
Mortality: 6.22 deaths / 1000 people. (2001 est.).
Migration: -0.49 people / 1000 people (2001 est.).
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.07 male/female; up to 15 years: 1.07 male/female; 15 to 64 years old: 0.95 male/female; over 65: 0.65 male/female; for the general population: 0.97 male/female (2001 est.);
Child mortality: 30.24 deaths/1000 live births (2001 est.).
Life expectancy: for the general population: 69.56 years; men: 67.12 years; women: 72.19 years (2001 est.).
General birth rate: 2.49 children/wives. (2001 est.).
Proportion of adults infected with HIV: 0.24% (1999 est.).
Number of people infected with HIV: 100,000 (1999 est.).
AIDS deaths: 2,500 (1999 est.).
Nationality: noun: Vietnamese; adjective: Vietnamese.
Ethnic groups: Vietnamese 85-90%, Chinese, Muong, Thai, Meo, Khmer, Man, Cham.
Believers: Buddhists, Taoists, Catholics, adherents of local beliefs, Muslims, Protestants, Cao Dai, Hoa Hao.
Language(s): Vietnamese (official), Chinese, English, French, Khmer, tribal languages (Mon-Khmer and Malayo-Polynesian).
Literacy: definition: persons aged 15 and over who can read and write; for the general population: 93.7%; men: 96.5%; women: 91.2% (1995 est.). State Name:
Politics
Common long form: Socialist Republic of Vietnam;
Common short form: Vietnam; local long form: Cong Hoa Chu Nghia Viet Nam; local short form: Viet Nam; abbreviation: SRV (SRV).
State structure: communist state. See politicsezine.com to know more about Vietnam Political System.
Capital: Hanoi.
Administrative division: 58 provinces (tinh), 3 municipalities* (thu do): An Giang, Bac Giang, Bac Kan, Bac Lieu, Bac Ninh, Ba Ria Vung Tau, Ben Tre, Binh Dinh, Binh Duong, Binh Tuan, Binh Phu Ok, Vinh Long, Vin Phu, Dak Lak, Da Nang, Dong Nai, Donghap, Gyalai, Yen Bai, Ka Mau, Can Tho, Caobang, Kon Tum, Quang Bin, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai, Quang Ninh, Quang Chi, Kien Giang, Laichau, Lamdong, Lan G Son, Lao Cai, Longan, Nam Dinh, Nghe An, Ninh Binh, Ninh Tuan, Tay Ninh, Tua Tien Hue, Tuyen Quang, Thai Binh, Thai Nguyen, Thai Hoa, Tien Giang, Phu Yen, Phu Tho, Hai Duong, Hai Phong*, Hanam, Hanoi*, Hanh Hoa, Hatay, Hatinh, Hauzyang, Hoa Binh, Ho Chi Minh City*, Hung Yen, Cha Vinh, Shokchang, Sonla.
Independence: from September 2, 1945 (until 1945 – a colony of France).
National holiday: Independence Day, September 2 (1945).
Constitution: adopted April 15, 1992
Legal system: based on communist legal theory and French civil law system.
Suffrage: from 18 years old; universal.
chief of state: President Tran Due LUONG (since 24 September 1997) and Vice President Nguyen Thi BINH (since October 1992);
head of government: Prime Minister Phan Van KHAI (since 25 September 1997) First Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Tan DUNG (since September 29, 1997); Deputy Prime Ministers Nguyen Cong TAN (since 29 September 1997), Nguyen Manh CAM (since 29 September 1997), Pham Gia KHIEM (since 29 September 1997);
Government: the Cabinet is appointed by the President on the proposal of the Prime Minister and approved by the National Assembly; elections: the president is elected by the National Assembly from among its members for 5 years; elections last held 25 September 1997 (next to be held after 2002 National Assembly elections); the prime minister is appointed by the president from among the members of the National Assembly; Deputy Prime Ministers appointed by the Prime Minister; election results: Tran Duk LUONG elected president; percentage of votes obtained in the National Assembly: n.d.a.
Legislature: unicameral National Assembly (Quoc-Hoi) (450 seats; members elected by popular vote for 5-year terms); elections: last held 20 July 1997 (next to be held in 2002); election results: distribution of votes between parties: CPV 92%, other 8% (8% are not members of the Communist Party, but their candidacies are approved by the CPV to participate in the elections); distribution of seats among parties: CPV or supported by CPV 450.
Judiciary: Supreme People’s Court, the president of the court is elected for 5 years by the National Assembly on the proposal of the president.
Political parties and leaders: One party is the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) (Le Kha PHIEU, general secretary).
Political influence groups and their leaders:
Participation in international organizations: ACCT, ARES, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CCC, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer).
US Diplomatic Mission: Head of Mission: Ambassador Nguyen Tarn CHIEN; office: 1233 20th Street NW, Washington, DC 20036, Suite 400; phone: [1] (202) 861-0737; fax: [C (202) 861-0917; consulates general: San Francisco.
US Mission: Chief of Mission: Ambassador Douglas “Pete” PETERSON (Douglas W.PETERSON); embassy:! Lang On Road, Ba Dinh District, Hanoi; mailing address: PSC 461, Box 400, FPO AP 96521-0002; phone: [84] (4) 8431500; fax: [84] (4) 8351510; Consulates General: Ho Chi Minh City.
Flag Description: Red with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center.
