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military aid to South Vietnam grew through the 1960s in an attempt to bolster the government, but US armed forces were withdrawn following a cease-fire agreement in 1973.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.

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

16 10 N, 107 50 E

Southeast Asia

slightly larger than New Mexico

3,444 km (excludes islands)

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

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

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

46,000 sq km (2008)

891.2 cu km (1999)

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

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

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

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% (2009 census)

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

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)

90,549,390 (July 2011 est.)

1.077% (2011 est.)

17.07 births/1,000 population (2011 est.)

5.96 deaths/1,000 population (July 2011 est.)

-0.35 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2011 est.)

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

56 deaths/100,000 live births (2008)

1.91 children born/woman (2011 est.)

7.2% of GDP (2009)

1.224 physicians/1,000 population (2008)

2.87 beds/1,000 population (2008)

urban: 99% of population

rural: 92% of population

total: 94% of population

urban: 1% of population

rural: 8% of population

total: 6% of population (2008)

urban: 94% of population

rural: 67% of population

total: 75% of population

urban: 6% of population

rural: 33% of population

total: 25% of population (2008)

0.4% (2009 est.)

280,000 (2009 est.)

14,000 (2009 est.)

0.5% (2000)

20.2% (2008)

5.3% of GDP (2008)

Communist state

58 provinces (tinh, singular and plural) and 5 municipalities (thanh pho, singular and plural)

2 September 1945 (from France)

Independence Day, 2 September (1945)

15 April 1992

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

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

18 years of age; universal

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

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

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

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

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

red field with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center; red symbolizes revolution and blood, the five-pointed star represents the five elements of the populace - peasants, workers, intellectuals, traders, and soldiers - that unite to build socialism

yellow, five-pointed star on red field

Vietnam is a densely-populated developing country that in the last 30 years 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. While Vietnam's economy remains dominated by state-owned enterprises (SOEs), which still produce about 40% of GDP, Vietnamese authorities have reaffirmed their commitment to economic liberalization and international integration. They have moved to implement the structural reforms needed to modernize the economy and to produce more competitive export-driven industries. Vietnam joined the WTO in January 2007 following more than a decade-long negotiation process. Vietnam became an official negotiating partner in the developing Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement in 2010. Agriculture's share of economic output has continued to shrink from about 25% in 2000 to about 20% in 2010, while industry's share increased from 36% to 41% in the same period. Deep poverty has declined significantly and Vietnam is working to create jobs to meet the challenge of a labor force that is growing by more than one million people every year. The global recession has hurt Vietnam's export-oriented economy, with GDP in 2009-10 growing less than the 7% per annum average achieved during the last decade. In 2010, exports increased by more than 25%, year-on-year, but the trade deficit remained high, prompting the government to consider administrative measures to limit the trade deficit. Vietnam's managed currency, the dong, continues to face downward pressure due to a persistent trade imbalance, and, since 2008, the government devalued it by 20% through a series of small devaluations. Foreign donors pledged nearly $8 billion in new development assistance for 2011. However, the government's strong growth-oriented economic policies have caused it to struggle to control one of the region's highest inflation rates, which reached 11.8% in 2010. Vietnam's economy also faces challenges from falling foreign exchange reserves, an undercapitalized banking sector, and high borrowing costs. The near-bankruptcy and subsequent default of the SOE Vinashin, a leading shipbuilder, led to a ratings downgrade of Vietnam's sovereign debt, exacerbating Vietnam's borrowing difficulties.

$276.6 billion (2010 est.)

$259 billion (2009 est.)

$245.9 billion (2008 est.)

$103.6 billion (2010 est.)

6.8% (2010 est.)

5.3% (2009 est.)

6.3% (2008 est.)

$3,100 (2010 est.)

$2,900 (2009 est.)

$2,800 (2008 est.)

47.37 million (2010 est.)

4.4% (2010 est.)

4.6% (2009 est.)

10.6% (2010 est.)

37.6 (2008)

36.1 (1998)

33.9% of GDP (2010 est.)

28.2% of GDP (2010 est.)

-5.5% of GDP (2010 est.)

57.1% of GDP (2010 est.)

49.8% of GDP (2009 est.)

9% (2010 est.)

7% (2009 est.)

7% (31 December 2010)

8% (31 December 2009 est.)

13.135% (31 December 2010 est.)

10.068% (31 December 2009 est.)

$32.08 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$30.6 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$127.1 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$103.4 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$138 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$110.4 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$20.39 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$21.2 billion (31 December 2009)

$9.589 billion (31 December 2008)

paddy rice, coffee, rubber, cotton, tea, pepper, soybeans, cashews, sugar cane, peanuts, bananas; poultry; fish, seafood

food processing, garments, shoes, machine-building; mining, coal, steel; cement, chemical fertilizer, glass, tires, oil, paper

14% (2010 est.)

97.3 billion kWh (2010 est.)

85.6 billion kWh (2010 est.)

535 million kWh (2009 est.)

3.85 billion kWh (2009 est.)

343,200 bbl/day (2010 est.)

320,000 bbl/day (2010 est.)

277,300 bbl/day (2009 est.)

182,300 bbl/day (2010 est.)

600 million bbl (1 January 2011 est.)

9.4 billion cu m (2010 est.)

10.3 billion cu m (2010 est.)

0 cu m (2009 est.)

905,800 cu m (2010 est.)

192.5 billion cu m (1 January 2011 est.)

-$12.22 billion (2010 est.)

-$6.117 billion (2009 est.)

$72.27 billion (2010 est.)

$57.1 billion (2009 est.)

clothes, shoes, marine products, crude oil, electronics, wooden products, rice, machinery

US 20%, Japan 10.7%, China 9.8%, South Korea 4.3% (2010 est.)

$79.95 billion (2010 est.)

$65.4 billion (2009 est.)

machinery and equipment, petroleum products, steel products, raw materials for the clothing and shoe industries, electronics, plastics, automobiles

China 23.8%, South Korea 11.6%, Japan 10.8%, Taiwan 8.4%, Thailand 6.7%, Singapore 4.9% (2010 est.)

$12.93 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$16.8 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$32.84 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$28.67 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$77.95 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$66.95 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$7.7 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$5.3 billion (31 December 2008)

dong (VND) per US dollar -

19,148.9 (2010)

17,799.6 (2009)

16,548.3 (2008)

16,119 (2007)

15,983 (2006)

16.4 million (2010)

154 million (2010)

government controls all broadcast media exercising oversight through the Ministry of Information and Communication (MIC); government-controlled national television provider, Vietnam Television (VTV), operates a network of 9 channels with several regional broadcasting centers; programming is relayed nationwide via a network of provincial and municipal TV stations; law limits access to satellite TV but many households are able to access foreign programming via home satellite equipment; government-controlled Voice of Vietnam, the national radio broadcaster, broadcasts on 6 channels and is repeated on AM, FM, and shortwave stations throughout Vietnam (2008)

.vn

129,318 (2010)

23.382 million (2009)

44 (2010)

1 (2010)

condensate 28 km; condensate/gas 10 km; gas 216 km; refined products 206 km (2010)

17,702 km (5,000 km are navigable by vessels up to 1.8 m draft) (2011)

Cam Pha Port, Da Nang, Hai Phong, Ho Chi Minh City, Phu My, Quy Nhon

the International Maritime Bureau reports the territorial and offshore waters in the South China Sea as high risk for piracy and armed robbery against ships; numerous commercial vessels have been attacked and hijacked both at anchor and while underway; hijacked vessels are often disguised and cargo diverted to ports in East Asia; crews have been murdered or cast adrift

People's Armed Forces: People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN; includes People's Navy Command (with Naval Infantry, Coast Guard), Air and Air Defense Force (Khong Quan Nhan Dan), Border Defense Command), People's Public Security Forces, Militia Force, Self-Defense Forces (2010)

18 years of age for male compulsory military service; females may volunteer for active duty military service; conscript service obligation - 2 years (3 to 4 years in the navy); 18-45 years of age (male) or 18-40 years of age (female) for Militia Force or Self Defense Forces (2006)

2.5% of GDP (2005 est.)

southeast Asian states have enhanced border surveillance to check the spread of avian flu; Cambodia and Laos protest Vietnamese squatters and armed encroachments along border; Cambodia accuses Vietnam of a wide variety of illicit cross-border activities; Progress on a joint development area with Cambodia is hampered by an unresolved dispute over sovereignty of offshore islands; an estimated 300,000 Vietnamese refugees reside in China; establishment of a maritime boundary with Cambodia is hampered by unresolved dispute over the sovereignty of offshore islands; the decade-long demarcation of the China-Vietnam land boundary was completed in 2009; China occupies the Paracel Islands also claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan; Brunei claims a maritime boundary extending beyond as far as a median with Vietnam, thus asserting an implicit claim to Lousia Reef; the 2002 "Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea" has eased tensions but falls short of a legally binding "code of conduct" desired by several of the disputants; Vietnam continues to expand construction of facilities in the Spratly Islands; in March 2005, the national oil companies of China, the Philippines, and Vietnam signed a joint accord to conduct marine seismic activities in the Spratly Islands

minor producer of opium poppy; probable minor transit point for Southeast Asian heroin; government continues to face domestic opium/heroin/methamphetamine addiction problems despite longstanding crackdowns