all facts of Vietnam

10/06/2013 | 09:07

Background:

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military aid to South Vietnam grew through the 1960s in an attempt to bolster the government, but US armed forces were withdrawn following a cease-fire agreement in 1973.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, the persecution and mass exodus of individuals - many of them successful South Vietnamese merchants - and growing international isolation. 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 communist leaders, however, maintain control on political expression and have resisted outside calls to improve human rights. The country continues to experience small-scale protests from various groups - the vast majority connected to land-use issues, calls for increased political space, and the lack of equitable mechanisms for resolving disputes. Various ethnic minorities, such as the Montagnards of the Central Highlands and the Khmer Krom in the southern delta region, have also held protests.

Location:

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

Geographic coordinates:

16 10 N, 107 50 E

Map references:

Southeast Asia

Area:

total: 331,210 sq km

land: 310,070 sq km

water: 21,140 sq km

Area - comparative:

slightly larger than New Mexico

Land boundaries:

total: 4,639 km

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

Coastline:

3,444 km (excludes islands)

Maritime claims:

territorial sea: 12 nm

contiguous zone: 24 nm

exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin

Climate:

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

Terrain:

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

Elevation extremes:

lowest point: South China Sea 0 m

highest point: Fan Si Pan 3,144 m

Natural resources:

phosphates, coal, manganese, rare earth elements, bauxite, chromate, offshore oil and gas deposits, timber, hydropower

Land use:

arable land: 19.64%

permanent crops: 11.18%

other: 69.18% (2011)

Irrigated land:

45,850 sq km (2005)

Total renewable water resources:

884.1 cu km (2011)

Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):

total: 82.03 cu km/yr (1%/4%/95%)

per capita: 965 cu m/yr (2005)

Natural hazards:

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

Environment - current issues:

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

Environment - international agreements:

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

Geography - note:

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

Nationality:

noun: Vietnamese (singular and plural)

adjective: Vietnamese

Ethnic groups:

Kinh (Viet) 85.7%, Tay 1.9%, Thai 1.8%, Muong 1.5%, Khmer 1.5%, Mong 1.2%, Nung 1.1%, others 5.3% (1999 census)

Languages:

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

Religions:

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)

Population:

92,477,857 (July 2013 est.)

Age structure:

0-14 years: 24.6% (male 11,931,623/female 10,807,661)

15-24 years: 18.4% (male 8,796,395/female 8,215,536)

25-54 years: 44.4% (male 20,554,252/female 20,551,460)

55-64 years: 7% (male 2,936,340/female 3,517,538)

65 years and over: 5.6% (male 1,986,839/female 3,180,213) (2013 est.)

Median age:

total: 28.7 years

male: 27.6 years

female: 29.7 years (2013 est.)

Population growth rate:

1.03% (2013 est.)

Birth rate:

16.56 births/1,000 population (2013 est.)

Death rate:

5.94 deaths/1,000 population (2013 est.)

Net migration rate:

-0.33 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2013 est.)

Urbanization:

urban population: 30% of total population (2010)

rate of urbanization: 3% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)

Major urban areas - population:

Ho Chi Minh City 5.976 million; HANOI (capital) 2.668 million; Haiphong 1.941 million; Da Nang 807,000 (2009)

Sex ratio:

at birth: 1.12 male(s)/female

0-14 years: 1.1 male(s)/female

15-24 years: 1.07 male(s)/female

25-54 years: 1 male(s)/female

55-64 years: 0.83 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.62 male(s)/female

total population: 1 male(s)/female (2013 est.)

Maternal mortality rate:

59 deaths/100,000 live births (2010)

Infant mortality rate:

total: 19.61 deaths/1,000 live births

male: 19.97 deaths/1,000 live births

female: 19.19 deaths/1,000 live births (2013 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:

total population: 72.65 years

male: 70.2 years

female: 75.4 years (2013 est.)

Total fertility rate:

1.87 children born/woman (2013 est.)

Health expenditures:

6.8% of GDP (2010)

Physicians density:

1.22 physicians/1,000 population (2008)

Hospital bed density:

3.1 beds/1,000 population (2009)

Drinking water source:

improved:

urban: 99% of population

rural: 93% of population

total: 95% of population

unimproved:

urban: 1% of population

rural: 7% of population

total: 5% of population (2010 est.)

Sanitation facility access:

improved:

urban: 94% of population

rural: 68% of population

total: 76% of population

unimproved:

urban: 6% of population

rural: 32% of population

total: 24% of population (2010 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:

0.4% (2009 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:

280,000 (2009 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:

14,000 (2009 est.)

Major infectious diseases:

degree of risk: high

food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever

vectorborne diseases: dengue fever, malaria, Japanese encephalitis, and plague

water contact disease: leptospirosis

note: highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza has been identified in this country; it poses a negligible risk with extremely rare cases possible among US citizens who have close contact with birds (2009)

Obesity - adult prevalence rate:

1.7% (2008)

Children under the age of 5 years underweight:

20.2% (2008)

Education expenditures:

6.6% of GDP (2010)

Literacy:

definition: age 15 and over can read and write

total population: 94%

male: 96.1%

female: 92% (2002 est.)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):

total: 10 years

male: 11 years

female: 10 years (2001)

Unemployment, youth ages 15-24:

total: 4.6%

male: 4.4%

female: 4.9% (2004)

Country name:

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

Government type:

Communist state

Capital:

name: Hanoi (Ha Noi)

geographic coordinates: 21 02 N, 105 51 E

time difference: UTC+7 (12 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

Administrative divisions:

58 provinces (tinh, singular and plural) and 5 municipalities (thanh pho, 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, Dak Lak, Dak Nong, Dien Bien, Dong Nai, Dong Thap, Gia Lai, Ha Giang, Ha Nam, 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, Ha Noi, Hai Phong, Ho Chi Minh City

Independence:

2 September 1945 (from France)

National holiday:

Independence Day, 2 September (1945)

Constitution:

15 April 1992

Legal system:

civil law system; note - the civil code of 2005 reflects a European-style civil law

International law organization participation:

has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt

Suffrage:

18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:

chief of state: President Truong Tan SANG (since 25 July 2011); Vice President Nguyen Thi DOAN (25 July 2007)

head of government: Prime Minister Nguyen Tan DUNG (since 27 June 2006); Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung HAI (since 2 August 2007), Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Thien NHAN (since 2 August 2007), Deputy Prime Minister Vu Van NINH (since 3 August 2011), and Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan PHUC (since 3 August 2011)

cabinet: Cabinet appointed by president based on proposal of prime minister and confirmed by National Assembly

elections: president elected by the National Assembly from among its members for five-year term; last election held 25 July 2011 (next to be held in July 2016); prime minister appointed by the president from among the members of the National Assembly; deputy prime ministers appointed by the prime minister; appointment of prime minister and deputy prime ministers confirmed by National Assembly

election results: Truong Tan SANG elected president, percent of National Assembly vote - 97%; Nguyen Tan DUNG elected prime minister, percent of National Assembly vote - 94%

Legislative branch:

unicameral National Assembly or Quoc Hoi (500 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)

elections: last held on 22 May 2011 (next to be held in May 2016)

election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - CPV 458, non-party CPV-approved 38, self-nominated 4; note - 500 candidates were elected; the 496 CPV and non-party CPV-approved delegates were members of the Vietnamese Fatherland Front and were vetted prior to the election

Judicial branch:

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

Political parties and leaders:

Communist Party of Vietnam or CPV [Nguyen Phu TRONG]; other parties proscribed

Political pressure groups and leaders:

8406 Bloc; Democratic Party of Vietnam or DPV; People's Democratic Party Vietnam or PDP-VN; Alliance for Democracy

note: these groups advocate democracy but are not recognized by the government

International organization participation:

ADB, APEC, ARF, ASEAN, CICA, CP, EAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (NGOs), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US:

chief of mission: Ambassador Nguyen Quoc CUONG

chancery: 1233 20th Street NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC 20036

telephone:&