Prepared by : Tu (Mr) Nguyen Ngoc

Country Profile

• Location: Southeastern Asia, bordering the Gulf of Thailand, Gulf of

Tonkin, and South China Sea, alongside China, Laos, and Cambodia
• Total Area : 329,560 sq km

• Population : 83,535,576 (July 2005 est)

• Age structure: : (2005 est.)

0-14 years: 27.9% (male 12,065,777/female 11,212,299)

15-64 years: 66.4% (male 27,406,456/female 28,024,250)

65 years and over: 5.8% (male 1,889,585/female 2,937,209)

• Capital City : Ha Noi

• Nationality: noun: Vietnamese (singular and plural)

adjective: Vietnamese

• Ethnic groups: Kinh (Viet) 86.2%, Tay 1.9%, Thai 1.7%, Muong 1.5%,
Khome 1.4%, Hoa 1.1%, Nun 1.1%, Hmong 1%, others 4.1% (1999
census)
Country Profile

• 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)

• Languages: Vietnamese (official), English (increasingly favored

as a second language), some French, Chinese, and Khmer;
mountain area languages (Mon-Khmer and Malayo-Polynesian)
• Climate : Tropical in south & seasonal in north

• Natural Hazards : Occasional typhoons (May to January)

with extensive flooding

Economy Profile

• Currency Code : Dong (VND)

• Exchange Rate : Dong per US dollar – 15,913 (2005)
• Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: : $8.863 Billion

• GDP (purchasing power parity): $227.2 billion (2004 est.)

• GDP - real growth rate: 7.7% (2004 est.)

• GDP - per capital: purchasing power parity - $2,700 (2004 est.)

• GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 21.8%

industry: 40.1%
services: 38.1% (2004 est.)

• Labor force: 42.98 million (2004 est.)

• Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 63%, industry and services

37% (2000 est.)
Economy Profile

• Exports:$23.72 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)

• Exports - commodities : crude oil, marine products, rice, coffee, rubber,
tea, garments, shoes

• Exports - partners: US 20.2%, Japan 13.6%, China 9%, Australia 7%,

Germany 5.9%, Singapore 4.8%, UK 4.6% (2004)

• Imports: $26.31 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)

• Imports - commodities: Machinery and equipment, petroleum products,

fertilizer, steel products, raw cotton, grain, cement, motorcycles

• Imports - partners: China 13.7%, Taiwan 11.3%, South Korea 10.8%, Japan
10.5%, Singapore 10.5%, Thailand 6.2%, Hong Kong 4% (2004)

• Agriculture - products: paddy rice, coffee, fish and seafood, rubber, cotton,
tea, pepper, soybeans, cashews, sugar cane, peanuts, bananas, poultry

• Industries: food processing, garments, shoes, machine-building, mining,

cement, chemical fertilizer, glass, tires, oil, coal, steel, paper)
 Economy Profile

• Densely populated, developing country but rigidities of central planned economy.

• From 1975, for over two decades Vietnam experienced little economic growth due to the centrally
planned policies until the reform of the economy implemented.

• Exercised open policy since 1986 which enable the country to develop progressively.

• Growth averaged about 7-9% per year since1993.

• Exercised economic liberalization and internal integration since 2001.

• Implemented the structural reforms needed to modernize the economy and competitiveness

• However, the equitization of state-owned’s enterprises are still prevalent.

 Economy Profile

• International organization participation: ACCT (observer), APEC, APT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, FAO,
G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer),
ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO,
WMO, WToO, WTO (observer)
• Vietnam’s membership in the AFTA, and entry into force of US-Vietnam Bilateral Trade in 2001 has led to
more rapid changes in the economy

• Vietnam is working toward accession to the WTO in 2006

 Political Profile

• Colonised by France since 1858 resulting in the total annexation of the country.

• Independence was declared in 1945 after World War II.

• French were defeated by the Communist who then took over the North.

• US economic and military aid to South Vietnam grew through 1960’s, but US armed forces withdrew from
Vietnam following a cease-fire agreement in 1973. Reunification of the country achieved in 1975 .

• Vietnam has been a Socialist country with only one ruling party – The communist.
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