1993 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1993 (Project Gutenberg)
Geography
Area
total area: 329,560 km2 land area: 325,360 km2 comparative area: slightly larger than New Mexico
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)
Coastline
3,444 km (excludes islands)
Environment
occasional typhoons (May to January) with extensive flooding
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
Irrigated land
18,300 km2 (1989 est.)
Land boundaries
total 3,818 km, Cambodia 982 km, China 1,281 km, Laos 1,555 km
Land use
arable land: 22% permanent crops: 2% meadows and pastures: 1% forest and woodland: 40% other: 35%
Location
Southeast Asia, bordering the South China Sea, between Laos and the Philippines
Map references
Asia, Southeast Asia, Standard Time Zones of the World
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
Natural resources
phosphates, coal, manganese, bauxite, chromate, offshore oil deposits, forests
Terrain
low, flat delta in south and north; central highlands; hilly, mountainous in far north and northwest
People and Society
Birth rate
27.99 births/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Death rate
7.92 deaths/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Ethnic divisions
Vietnamese 85-90%, Chinese 3%, Muong, Thai, Meo, Khmer, Man, Cham
Infant mortality rate
46.4 deaths/1,000 live births (1993 est.)
Labor force
32.7 million by occupation: agricultural 65%, industrial and service 35% (1990 est.)
Languages
Vietnamese (official), French, Chinese, English, Khmer, tribal languages (Mon-Khmer and Malayo-Polynesian)
Life expectancy at birth
total population: 65.1 years male: 63.08 years female: 67.25 years (1993 est.)
Literacy
age 15 and over can read and write (1990) total population: 88% male: 92% female: 84%
Nationality
noun: Vietnamese (singular and plural) adjective: Vietnamese
Net migration rate
-1.56 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Population
71,787,608 (July 1993 est.)
Population growth rate
1.85% (1993 est.)
Religions
Buddhist, Taoist, Roman Catholic, indigenous beliefs, Islamic, Protestant
Total fertility rate
3.45 children born/woman (1993 est.)
Government
Abbreviation
SRV
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
Capital
Hanoi
Chief of State
President Le Duc ANH (since 23 September 1992)
Constitution
NA April 1992
Digraph
VM
Diplomatic representation in US
none
Executive branch
president, prime minister, three deputy prime ministers
Flag
red with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center
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)
Independence
2 September 1945 (from France)
Judicial branch
Supreme People's Court
Legal system
based on Communist legal theory and French civil law system
Legislative branch
unicameral National Assembly (Quoc-Hoi)
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
Names
conventional long form: Socialist Republic of Vietnam conventional short form:
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
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
Type
Communist state
US diplomatic representation
none
Vietnam local long form
Cong Hoa Chu Nghia Viet Nam local short form: Viet Nam
Economy
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.)
Budget
revenues $1.7 billion; expenditures $1.9 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1990)
Currency
1 new dong (D) = 100 xu
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
Electricity
3,300,000 kW capacity; 9,000 million kWh produced, 130 kWh per capita (1992)
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
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
External debt
$16.8 billion (1990 est.)
Fiscal year
calendar year
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
Industrial production
growth rate 15% (1992); accounts for 30% of GNP
Industries
food processing, textiles, machine building, mining, cement, chemical fertilizer, glass, tires, oil
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
15%-20% (1992 est.)
National product
GNP - exchange rate conversion - $16 billion (1992 est.)
National product per capita
$230 (1992 est.)
National product real growth rate
7.4% (1992 est.)
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.
Unemployment rate
25% (1992 est.)
Communications
Airports
total: 100 usable: 100 with permanent-surface runways: 50 with runways over 3,659 m: with runways 2,440-3,659 m: 10 with runways 1,220-2,439 m: 20
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
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
Pipelines
petroleum products 150 km
Ports
Da Nang, Haiphong, Ho Chi Minh City
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
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)
Military and Security
Branches
Ground, Navy (including Naval Infantry), Air Force
Defense expenditures
exchange rate conversion - $NA, NA% of GNP
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.)