Statistical information Vietnam 1993

Vietnam in the World
top of pageBackground: France occupied all of Vietnam by 1884. Independence was declared after World War II but the French continued to rule until 1954 when they were defeated by communist forces under HO Chi Minh who took control of the north. 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military aid to South Vietnam grew through the 1960s in an attempt to bolster the government but US armed forces were withdrawn following a cease-fire agreement in 1973.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. Economic reconstruction of the reunited country has proven difficult as aging Communist Party leaders have only grudgingly initiated reforms necessary for a free market.
top of pageLocation: Southeast Asia, bordering the South China Sea, between Laos and the Philippines
Geographic coordinatesMap reference:
Asia, Southeast Asia, Standard Time Zones of the WorldAreaTotal: 329,560 km²
Land: 325,360 km²
Land boundaries: total 3,818 km, Cambodia 982 km, China 1,281 km, Laos 1,555 km
Coastline: 3,444 km (excludes islands)
Contiguous zone: 24 nm
Continental shelf: 200 nm or the edge of continental margin
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Maritime claimsClimate: tropical in south; monsoonal in north with hot, rainy season (mid-May to mid-September) and warm, dry season (mid-October to mid-March)
Terrain: low, flat delta in south and north; central highlands; hilly, mountainous in far north and northwest
ElevationNatural resources: phosphates, coal, manganese, bauxite, chromate, offshore oil deposits, forests
Land useArable land: 22%
Permanent crops: 2%
Meadows and pastures: 1%
Forest and woodland: 40%
Other: 35%
Irrigated land: 18,300 km² (1989 est.)
Major riversMajor watersheds area km²Total water withdrawalTotal renewable water resourcesNatural hazardsGeographytop of pagePopulation: 71,787,608 (July 1993 est.)
Growth rate: 1.85% (1993 est.)
NationalityNoun: Vietnamese (singular and plural)
Adjective: Vietnamese
Ethnic groups:
Vietnamese 85-90%, Chinese 3%, Muong, Thai, Meo, Khmer,
Man, Cham
Languages: Vietnamese (official), French, Chinese, English, Khmer, tribal languages (Mon-Khmer and Malayo-Polynesian)
Religions:
Buddhist, Taoist, Roman Catholic, indigenous beliefs, Islamic,
Protestant
Demographic profileAge structureDependency ratiosMedian agePopulation growth rate: 1.85% (1993 est.)
Birth rate: 27.99 births/1000 population (1993 est.)
Death rate: 7.92 deaths/1000 population (1993 est.)
Net migration rate: -1.56 migrant(s)/1000 population (1993 est.)
Population distributionUrbanizationMajor urban areasEnvironmentCurrent issues: occasional typhoons (May to January) with extensive flooding
Air pollutantsSex ratioMothers mean age at first birthMaternal mortality ratioInfant mortality rate: 46.4 deaths/1000 live births (1993 est.)
Life expectancy at birthTotal population: 65.1 years
Male: 63.08 years
Female: 67.25 years (1993 est.)
Total fertility rate: 3.45 children born/woman (1993 est.)
Contraceptive prevalence rateDrinking water sourceCurrent health expenditurePhysicians densityHospital bed densitySanitation facility accessHiv/AidsMajor infectious diseasesObesity adult prevalence rateAlcohol consumptionTobacco useChildren under the age of 5 years underweightEducation expendituresLiteracy: age 15 and over can read and write (1990)
Total population: 88%
Male: 92%
Female: 84%
School life expectancy primary to tertiary educationYouth unemploymenttop of pageCountry nameConventional long form: Socialist Republic of Vietnam
Conventional short form: Vietnam
Local long form: Cong Hoa Chu Nghia Viet Nam
Abbreviation: SRV
Government type: Communist state
Capital: Hanoi
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
Dependent areasIndependence: 2 September 1945 (from France)
National holiday: Independence Day, 2 September (1945)
Constitution: NA April 1992
Legal system: based on Communist legal theory and French civil law system
International law organization participationCitizenshipSuffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: president, prime minister, three deputy prime ministers
Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly (Quoc-Hoi)
Judicial branch: Supreme People's Court
Political parties and leadersInternational organization participation:
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
Diplomatic representationIn the us: none
From the us: none
Flag description
National symbolsNational anthemNational heritagetop of pageEconomy 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.
Real gdp purchasing power parityReal gdp growth rate: 7.4% (1992 est.)
Real gdp per capita: $230 (1992 est.)
Gross national savingGdp composition by sector of origin
Gdp composition by end useGdp composition by sector of originAgriculture products:
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.)
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
Industries: food processing, textiles, machine building, mining, cement, chemical fertilizer, glass, tires, oil
Industrial production growth rate: growth rate 15% (1992; accounts for 30% of GNP
Labor force: 32.7 million
By occupation agricultural: 65%
By occupation industrial and service: 35% (1990 est.)
Unemployment rate: 25% (1992 est.)
Youth unemploymentPopulation below poverty lineGini indexHousehold income or consumption by percentage shareDistribution of family income gini indexBudget: revenues $1.7 billion; expenditures $1.9 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1990)
Taxes and other revenuesPublic debtRevenueFiscal year: calendar year
Inflation rate consumer pricesCentral bank discount rateCommercial bank prime lending rateStock of narrow moneyStock of broad moneyStock of domestic creditMarket value of publicly traded sharesCurrent account balanceExports: $2.3 billion (f.o.b., 1992)
Commodoties: agricultural and handicraft products, coal, minerals, crude oil, ores, seafood
Partners: Japan, Singapore, Thailand, Hong Kong, Taiwan
Imports: $1.9 billion (c.i.f., 1992)
Commodoties: petroleum products, steel products, railroad equipment, chemicals, medicines, raw cotton, fertilizer, grain
Partners: Japan, Singapore, Thailand
Reserves of foreign exchange and goldDebt externalStock of direct foreign investment at homeStock of direct foreign investment abroadExchange 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
top of pageElectricityProduction: 3,300,000 kW capacity; 9,000 million kWh produced, 130 kWh per capita (1992)
CoalPetroleumCrude oilRefined petroleumNatural gasCarbon dioxide emissionsEnergy consumption per capitatop of pageTelephonesTelephone systemBroadcast mediaInternetBroadband fixed subscriptionstop of pageMilitary expendituresPercent of gdp: exchange rate conversion - $NA, NA% of GNP
Military and security forcesMilitary service age and obligationSpace programTerrorist groupstop of pageNational air transport systemCivil aircraft registration country code prefixAirports: 100
Usable: 100
With permanentsurface runways: 50
With runways over 3659 m: 0
With runways 2440-3659 m: 10
With runways 1220-2439 m: 20
HeliportsPipelines: petroleum products 150 km
RailwaysRoadwaysWaterways: 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
Ports and terminalsVietnam - Transnational issues 1993
top of pageDisputes international:
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
Refugees and internally displaced personsIllicit drugs