Jordan (2005) | Vietnam (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 12 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Ajlun, Al 'Aqabah, Al Balqa', Al Karak, Al Mafraq, 'Amman, At Tafilah, Az Zarqa', Irbid, Jarash, Ma'an, Madaba | 58 provinces (tinh, singular and plural), 3 municipalities* (thu do, singular and plural); 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, Can Tho, Cao Bang, Dac Lak, Da Nang, Dong Nai, Dong Thap, Gia Lai, Ha Giang, Hai Duong, Hai Phong*, Ha Nam, Ha Noi*, Ha Tay, Ha Tinh, Hoa Binh, Ho Chi Minh*, 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 |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 34.5% (male 1,015,084/female 973,220)
15-64 years: 61.7% (male 1,897,643/female 1,656,570) 65 years and over: 3.8% (male 106,168/female 111,047) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years:
32.13% (male 13,266,585; female 12,415,384) 15-64 years: 62.44% (male 24,357,343; female 25,556,187) 65 years and over: 5.43% (male 1,722,094; female 2,621,421) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, barley, citrus, tomatoes, melons, olives; sheep, goats, poultry | paddy rice, corn, potatoes, rubber, soybeans, coffee, tea, bananas, sugar; poultry, pigs; fish |
Airports | 17 (2004 est.) | 34 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 15
over 3,047 m: 7 2,438 to 3,047 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
total:
17 over 3,047 m: 8 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 2
under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
total:
17 over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 8 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 92,300 sq km
land: 91,971 sq km water: 329 sq km |
total:
329,560 sq km land: 325,360 sq km water: 4,200 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Indiana | slightly larger than New Mexico |
Background | For most of its history since independence from British administration in 1946, Jordan was ruled by King HUSSEIN (1953-99). A pragmatic ruler, he successfully navigated competing pressures from the major powers (US, USSR, and UK), various Arab states, Israel, and a large internal Palestinian population, despite several wars and coup attempts. In 1989 he reinstituted parliamentary elections and gradual political liberalization; in 1994 he signed a formal peace treaty with Israel. King ABDALLAH II - the eldest son of King HUSSEIN and Princess MUNA - assumed the throne following his father's death in February 1999. Since then, he has consolidated his power and undertaken an aggressive economic reform program. Jordan acceded to the World Trade Organization in 2000, and began to participate in the European Free Trade Association in 2001. After a two-year delay, parliamentary and municipal elections took place in the summer of 2003. The Prime Minister and government appointed in April 2005 declared they would build upon the previous government's achievements to respect political and human rights and improve living standards. | 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. |
Birth rate | 21.76 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 21.23 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $3.483 billion
expenditures: $3.616 billion, including capital expenditures of $782 million (2004 est.) |
revenues:
$5.3 billion expenditures: $5.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.8 billion (1999 est.) |
Capital | 'Amman | Hanoi |
Climate | mostly arid desert; rainy season in west (November to April) | 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 | 26 km | 3,444 km (excludes islands) |
Constitution | 1 January 1952; amended 1974, 1976, 1984 | 15 April 1992 |
Country name | conventional long form: Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan
conventional short form: Jordan local long form: Al Mamlakah al Urduniyah al Hashimiyah local short form: Al Urdun former: Transjordan |
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 |
Currency | - | dong (VND) |
Death rate | 2.63 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 6.22 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $7.32 billion (2004 est.) | $13.2 billion (2000) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires David M. HALE
embassy: Abdoun, Amman mailing address: P. O. Box 354, Amman 11118 Jordan; Unit 70200, Box 5, APO AE 09892-0200 telephone: [962] (6) 592-0101 FAX: [962] (6) 592-4102 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Douglas B. "Pete" PETERSON embassy: 7 Lang Ha Road, Ba Dinh District, Hanoi mailing address: PSC 461, Box 400, FPO AP 96521-0002 telephone: [84] (4) 8431500 FAX: [84] (4) 8351510 consulate(s) general: Ho Chi Minh City |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Karim Tawfiq KAWAR
chancery: 3504 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 966-2664 FAX: [1] (202) 966-3110 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador-designate Nguyen Tam CHIEN chancery: 1233 20th Street NW, Washington, DC 20036, Suite 400 telephone: [1] (202) 861-0737 FAX: [1] (202) 861-0917 consulate(s) general: San Francisco |
Disputes - international | 2004 Agreement settles border dispute with Syria pending demarcation | maritime boundary with Cambodia not defined; involved in a complex dispute over the Spratly Islands with China, Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, and possibly Brunei; maritime boundary agreement with China in the Gulf of Tonkin awaits ratification; Paracel Islands occupied by China but claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan; portions of boundary with Cambodia are in dispute; agreement on land border with China was signed in December 1999, but details of alignment have not yet been made public |
Economic aid - recipient | ODA, $500 million (2004 est.) | $2.1 billion in credits and grants pledged by international donors for 2000 |
Economy - overview | Jordan is a small Arab country with inadequate supplies of water and other natural resources such as oil. Debt, poverty, and unemployment are fundamental problems, but King ABDALLAH, since assuming the throne in 1999, has undertaken some broad economic reforms in a long-term effort to improve living standards. Amman in the past three years has worked closely with the IMF, practiced careful monetary policy, and made substantial headway with privatization. The government also has liberalized the trade regime sufficiently to secure Jordan's membership in the WTO (2000), a free trade accord with the US (2001), and an association agreement with the EU (2001). These measures have helped improve productivity and have put Jordan on the foreign investment map. Jordan imported most of its oil from Iraq, but the US-led war in Iraq in 2003 made Jordan more dependent on oil from other Gulf nations forcing the Jordanian government to raise retail petroleum product prices and the sales tax base. Jordan's export market, which is heavily dependent on exports to Iraq, was also affected by the war but recovered quickly while contributing to the Iraq recovery effort. The main challenges facing Jordan are reducing dependence on foreign grants, reducing the budget deficit, and creating investment incentives to promote job creation. | Vietnam is a poor, densely populated country that 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. Substantial progress was achieved from 1986 to 1996 in moving forward from an extremely low starting point - growth averaged around 9% per year from 1993 to 1997. The 1997 Asian financial crisis highlighted the problems existing in the Vietnamese economy but, rather than prompting reform, reaffirmed the government's belief that shifting to a market oriented economy leads to disaster. GDP growth of 8.5% in 1997 fell to 6% in 1998 and 5% in 1999. Growth continued at the moderately strong level of 5.5%, a level that should be matched in 2001. These numbers mask some major difficulties in economic performance. Many domestic industries, including coal, cement, steel, and paper, have reported large stockpiles of inventory and tough competition from more efficient foreign producers; this problem apparently eased in 2000. Foreign direct investment fell dramatically, from $8.3 billion in 1996 to about $1.6 billion in 1999. Meanwhile, Vietnamese authorities have moved slowly in implementing the structural reforms needed to revitalize the economy and produce more competitive, export-driven industries. |
Electricity - consumption | 7.094 billion kWh (2002) | 21.376 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 2 million kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 300 million kWh (2002) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 7.307 billion kWh (2002) | 22.985 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
47.71% hydro: 52.29% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m
highest point: Jabal Ram 1,734 m |
lowest point:
South China Sea 0 m highest point: Ngoc Linh 3,143 m |
Environment - current issues | limited natural fresh water resources; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification | 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, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Nuclear Test Ban |
Ethnic groups | Arab 98%, Circassian 1%, Armenian 1% | Vietnamese 85%-90%, Chinese, Hmong, Thai, Khmer, Cham, mountain groups |
Exchange rates | Jordanian dinars per US dollar - 0.709 (2004), 0.709 (2003), 0.709 (2002), 0.709 (2001), 0.709 (2000) | dong per US dollar - 14,530 (January 2001), 14,020 (January 2000), 13,900 (December 1998), 11,100 (December 1996), 11,193 (1995 average), 11,000 (October 1994) |
Executive branch | chief of state: King ABDALLAH II (since 7 February 1999); Prince HUSSEIN (born 1994), son of King ABDALLAH, is first in line to inherit the throne
head of government: Prime Minister Adnan BADRAN (since 7 April 2005); Deputy Prime Ministers Marwan al-MUASHER and Hisham al-TEL (since 3 July 2005) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister in consultation with the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch |
chief of state:
President Tran Duc LUONG (since 24 September 1997) and Vice President Nguyen Thi BINH (since NA October 1992) head of government: Prime Minister Phan Van KHAI (since 25 September 1997); First Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Tan DUNG (since 29 September 1997); Deputy Prime Ministers Nguyen Cong TAN (since 29 September 1997), Nguyen Manh CAM (since 29 September 1997), and Pham Gia KHIEM (since 29 September 1997) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the proposal of the prime minister and ratification of the National Assembly elections: president elected by the National Assembly from among its members for a five-year term; election last held 25 September 1997 (next to be held when National Assembly meets following legislative elections in NA 2002); prime minister appointed by the president from among the members of the National Assembly; deputy prime ministers appointed by the prime minister election results: Tran Duc LUONG elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - NA% |
Exports | 0 bbl/day (2004 est.) | $14.3 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | clothing, phosphates, fertilizers, potash, vegetables, manufactures, pharmaceuticals | crude oil, marine products, rice, coffee, rubber, tea, garments, shoes |
Exports - partners | US 28.9%, Iraq 17.6%, India 7.1%, Saudi Arabia 5.6% (2004) | China, Japan, Germany, Australia, US, France, Singapore, UK, Taiwan |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of black (top), representing the Abbassid Caliphate, white, representing the Ummayyad Caliphate, and green, representing the Fatimid Caliphate; a red isosceles triangle on the hoist side, representing the Great Arab Revolt of 1916, and bearing a small white seven-pointed star symbolizing the seven verses of the opening Sura (Al-Fatiha) of the Holy Koran; the seven points on the star represent faith in One God, humanity, national spirit, humility, social justice, virtue, and aspirations; design is based on the Arab Revolt flag of World War I | red with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $154.4 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 2.4%
industry: 26% services: 71.5% (2004 est.) |
agriculture:
25% industry: 35% services: 40% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,500 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,950 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.1% (2004 est.) | 5.5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 31 00 N, 36 00 E | 16 00 N, 106 00 E |
Geography - note | strategic location at the head of the Gulf of Aqaba and as the Arab country that shares the longest border with Israel and the occupied West Bank | - |
Heliports | 1 (2004 est.) | - |
Highways | total: 7,301 km
paved: 7,301 km unpaved: 0 km (2002) |
total:
93,300 km paved: 23,418 km unpaved: 69,882 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3.3%
highest 10%: 29.8% (1997) |
lowest 10%:
3.5% highest 10%: 29% (1993) |
Illicit drugs | - | minor producer of opium poppy with 2,100 hectares cultivated in 1999, capable of producing 11 metric tons of opium; probable minor transit point for Southeast Asian heroin; opium/heroin/methamphetamine addiction problems |
Imports | 100,000 bbl/day (2004 est.) | $15.2 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | crude oil, textile fabrics, machinery, transport equipment, manufactured goods | machinery and equipment, petroleum products, fertilizer, steel products, raw cotton, grain, cement, motorcycles |
Imports - partners | Saudi Arabia 19.8%, China 8.4%, Germany 6.8%, US 6.8% (2004) | Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, China, Thailand, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Indonesia, France, US, Sweden |
Independence | 25 May 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration) | 2 September 1945 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 5% (2004 est.) | 10.7% (2000 est.) |
Industries | phosphate mining, pharmaceuticals, petroleum refining, cement, potash, inorganic chemicals, light manufacturing, tourism | food processing, garments, shoes, machine building, mining, cement, chemical fertilizer, glass, tires, oil, coal, steel, paper |
Infant mortality rate | total: 17.35 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 20.75 deaths/1,000 live births female: 13.75 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
30.24 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.2% (2004 est.) | -0.6% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, CAEU, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM, OIC, ONUB, OPCW, OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNMISET, UNOCI, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ACCT, APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CCC, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 5 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 750 sq km (1998 est.) | 18,600 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Court of Cassation; Supreme Court (court of final appeal) | Supreme People's Court (chief justice is elected for a five-year term by the National Assembly on the recommendation of the president) |
Labor force | 1.41 million (2004 est.) | 38.2 million (1998 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 5%, industry 12.5%, services 82.5% (2001 est.) | agriculture 67%, industry and services 33% (1997 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 1,635 km
border countries: Iraq 181 km, Israel 238 km, Saudi Arabia 744 km, Syria 375 km, West Bank 97 km |
total:
4,639 km border countries: Cambodia 1,228 km, China 1,281 km, Laos 2,130 km |
Land use | arable land: 2.67%
permanent crops: 1.83% other: 95.5% (2001) |
arable land:
17% permanent crops: 4% permanent pastures: 1% forests and woodland: 30% other: 48% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Arabic (official), English widely understood among upper and middle classes | Vietnamese (official), English (increasingly favored as a second language), some French, Chinese, and Khmer; mountain area languages (Mon-Khmer and Malayo-Polynesian) |
Legal system | based on Islamic law and French codes; judicial review of legislative acts in a specially provided High Tribunal; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on communist legal theory and French civil law system |
Legislative branch | bicameral National Assembly or Majlis al-'Umma consists of the Senate, also called the House of Notables (Majlis al-Ayan) (55 seats; members appointed by the monarch from designated categories of public figures; members serve four-year terms) and the House of Representatives, also called the House of Deputies (Majlis al-Nuwaab) (110 seats; members elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms; note - six seats are reserved for women and are allocated by a special electoral panel if no women are elected)
elections: House of Representatives - last held 17 June 2003 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - independents and others 89.6%, Islamic Action Front (IAF) 10.4%; seats by party - independents and others 92, Islamic Action Front 18; note - one of the six quota seats was given to a female IAF candidate note: the House of Representatives has been convened and dissolved by the monarch several times since 1974; in November 1989, the first parliamentary elections in 22 years were held; political parties were not legalized until 1992; King ABDALLAH delayed the 2001 elections until 2003 |
unicameral National Assembly or Quoc-Hoi (450 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 20 July 1997 (next to be held NA 2002) election results: percent of vote by party - CPV 92%, other 8% (the 8% are not CPV members but are approved by the CPV to stand for election); seats by party - CPV or CPV-approved 450 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 78.24 years
male: 75.75 years female: 80.88 years (2005 est.) |
total population:
69.56 years male: 67.12 years female: 72.19 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 91.3% male: 95.9% female: 86.3% (2003 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 93.7% male: 96.5% female: 91.2% (1995 est.) |
Location | Middle East, northwest of Saudi Arabia | Southeastern Asia, bordering the Gulf of Thailand, Gulf of Tonkin, and South China Sea, alongside China, Laos, and Cambodia |
Map references | Middle East | Southeast Asia |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 3 nm | contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 20 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 78,814 GRT/92,695 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 7, container 2, passenger/cargo 5, roll on/roll off 4 foreign-owned: 12 (Greece 3, UAE 9) registered in other countries: 14 (2005) |
total:
143 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 705,388 GRT/1,071,902 DWT ships by type: bulk 8, cargo 108, chemical tanker 1, combination bulk 1, container 2, liquefied gas 2, petroleum tanker 18, refrigerated cargo 3 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Jordanian Armed Forces (JAF): Royal Jordanian Land Force, Royal Jordanian Navy, Royal Jordanian Air Force, and Special Operations Command (SOCOM); note - Public Security Directorate normally falls under Ministry of Interior but comes under JAF in wartime or crisis situations | People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) (includes Ground Forces, Navy, and Air Force), Coast Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $1.46 billion (2004) | $650 million (FY98) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 14.6% (2004) | 2.5% (FY98) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
21,704,588 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
13,673,438 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 17 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
961,124 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 25 May (1946) | Independence Day, 2 September (1945) |
Nationality | noun: Jordanian(s)
adjective: Jordanian |
noun:
Vietnamese (singular and plural) adjective: Vietnamese |
Natural hazards | droughts; periodic earthquakes | occasional typhoons (May to January) with extensive flooding |
Natural resources | phosphates, potash, shale oil | phosphates, coal, manganese, bauxite, chromate, offshore oil and gas deposits, forests, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 6.42 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | -0.49 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 10 km; oil 743 km (2004) | petroleum products 150 km |
Political parties and leaders | Al-Ajyal [Muhammad KHALAYLEH, secretary general]; Al-Umma (Nation) Party [Ahmad al-HANANDEH, secretary general]; Arab Land Party [Dr. Ayishah Salih HIJAZAYN, secretary general]; Ba'th Arab Progressive Party [Fu'ad DABBUR, secretary general]; Communist Party [Munir HAMARINAH, secretary general]; Constitutional National Party [Ahmad al-SHUNNAQ, secretary general; Democratic Arab Islamic Movement [Yusuf ABU BAKR, president]; Green Party [Muhammad BATAYNEH, secretary general]; Islamic Action Front [Hazma MANSOUR, secretary general]; Islamic al-Walsat Party [Marwan al-FAURI], secretary general; Jordanian Democratic Left Party [Musa MA'AYTEH, secretary general]; Jordanian Democratic Popular Unity Party [Sa'id Dhiyab Ali MUSTAFA, secretary general]; Jordanian People's Democratic (Hashd) Party [Ahmad YUSUF, secretary general]; Jordanian Progressive Party [Fawwaz al-ZUBI, secretary general]; Labor Party [Dr. Mazin Sulayman Jiryis HANNA, secretary general]; Muslim Centrist Party [leader NA]; National Action (Haqq) Party [Tariq al-KAYYALI, secretary general]; National Constitutional Party [Abdul Hadi MAJALI, secretary general]; National Movement for Direct Democracy [Mahmud al-NUWAYHI, secretary general]; Pan-Arab (Democratic) Movement [Mahmud al-NUWAYHI, secretary general]; (Arab) Socialist Ba'th Party [Taysir al-HIMSI, secretary general] | only party - Communist Party of Vietnam or CPV [Le Kha PHIEU, general secretary] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Anti-Normalization Committee [Ali Abu SUKKAR, president vice chairman]; Jordanian Bar Association [Saleh ARMOUTI, president]; Jordanian Press Association [Sayf al-SHARIF, president]; Muslim Brotherhood [Abd-al-Majid DHUNAYBAT, secretary general] | none |
Population | 5,759,732 (July 2005 est.) | 79,939,014 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 30% (2001 est.) | 37% (1998 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.56% (2005 est.) | 1.45% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Al 'Aqabah | Cam Ranh, Da Nang, Haiphong, Ho Chi Minh City, Ha Long, Quy Nhon, Nha Trang, Vinh, Vung Tau |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 6, FM 5, shortwave 1 (1999) | AM 65, FM 7, shortwave 29 (1999) |
Radios | - | 8.2 million (1997) |
Railways | total: 505 km
narrow gauge: 505 km 1.050-m gauge (2004) |
total:
2,652 km standard gauge: 166 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 2,249 km 1.000-m gauge dual gauge: 237 km NA-m gauges (three rails) (1998) |
Religions | Sunni Muslim 92%, Christian 6% (majority Greek Orthodox, but some Greek and Roman Catholics, Syrian Orthodox, Coptic Orthodox, Armenian Orthodox, and Protestant denominations), other 2% (several small Shi'a Muslim and Druze populations) (2001 est.) | Buddhist, Hoa Hao, Cao Dai, Christian (predominantly Roman Catholic, some Protestant), indigenous beliefs, Muslim |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.15 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.96 male(s)/female total population: 1.1 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth:
1.07 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.66 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: service has improved recently with increased use of digital switching equipment, but better access to the telephone system is needed in the rural areas and easier access to pay telephones is needed by the urban public
domestic: microwave radio relay transmission and coaxial and fiber-optic cable are employed on trunk lines; considerable use of mobile cellular systems; Internet service is available international: country code - 962; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat, 1 Arabsat, and 29 land and maritime Inmarsat terminals; fiber-optic cable to Saudi Arabia and microwave radio relay link with Egypt and Syria; connection to international submarine cable FLAG (Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe); participant in MEDARABTEL; international links total about 4,000 |
general assessment:
Vietnam is putting considerable effort into modernization and expansion of its telecommunication system, but its performance continues to lag behind that of its more modern neighbors domestic: all provincial exchanges are digitalized and connected to Hanoi, Da Nang, and Ho Chi Minh City by fiber-optic cable or microwave radio relay networks; since 1991, main lines in use have been substantially increased and the use of mobile telephones is growing rapidly international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 622,600 (2003) | 2.6 million (2000) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1,325,300 (2003) | 730,155 (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 20 (plus 96 repeaters) (1995) | at least 7 (plus 13 repeaters) (1998) |
Terrain | mostly desert plateau in east, highland area in west; Great Rift Valley separates East and West Banks of the Jordan River | low, flat delta in south and north; central highlands; hilly, mountainous in far north and northwest |
Total fertility rate | 2.71 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 2.49 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 15% official rate; unofficial rate is approximately 30% (2004 est.) | 25% (1995 est.) |
Waterways | - | 17,702 km
note: more than 5,149 km are navigable at all times by vessels up to 1.8 m draft |