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Compare Laos (2001) - Vietnam (2002)

Compare Laos (2001) z Vietnam (2002)

 Laos (2001)Vietnam (2002)
 LaosVietnam
Administrative divisions 16 provinces (khoueng, singular and plural), 1 municipality* (kampheng nakhon, singular and plural), and 1 special zone** (khetphiset, singular and plural); Attapu, Bokeo, Bolikhamxai, Champasak, Houaphan, Khammouan, Louangnamtha, Louangphabang, Oudomxai, Phongsali, Salavan, Savannakhet, Viangchan*, Viangchan, Xaignabouli, Xaisomboun**, Xekong, Xiangkhoang 58 provinces (tinh, singular and plural), and 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:
42.75% (male 1,212,577; female 1,196,795)

15-64 years:
53.94% (male 1,494,927; female 1,544,851)

65 years and over:
3.31% (male 85,632; female 101,185) (2001 est.)
0-14 years: 31.6% (male 13,259,152; female 12,392,089)


15-64 years: 62.9% (male 24,938,098; female 26,083,681)


65 years and over: 5.5% (male 1,749,531; female 2,675,865) (2002 est.)
Agriculture - products sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton; tea, peanuts, rice; water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry paddy rice, corn, potatoes, rubber, soybeans, coffee, tea, bananas, sugar; poultry, pigs; fish
Airports 51 (2000 est.) 34 (2001)
Airports - with paved runways total:
8

2,438 to 3,047 m:
1

1,524 to 2,437 m:
5

914 to 1,523 m:
2 (2000 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 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways total:
43

1,524 to 2,437 m:
1

914 to 1,523 m:
17

under 914 m:
25 (2000 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 (2002)
Area total:
236,800 sq km

land:
230,800 sq km

water:
6,000 sq km
total: 329,560 sq km


land: 325,360 sq km


water: 4,200 sq km
Area - comparative slightly larger than Utah slightly larger than New Mexico
Background In 1975 the communist Pathet Lao took control of the government, ending a six-century-old monarchy. Initial closer ties to Vietnam and socialization were replaced with a gradual return to private enterprise, an easing of foreign investment laws, and the admission into ASEAN in 1997. 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 37.84 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) 20.89 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Budget revenues:
$211 million

expenditures:
$462 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY98/99 est.)
revenues: $5.3 billion


expenditures: $5.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.8 billion (1999 est.)
Capital Vientiane Hanoi
Climate tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December 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 0 km (landlocked) 3,444 km (excludes islands)
Constitution promulgated 14 August 1991 15 April 1992
Country name conventional long form:
Lao People's Democratic Republic

conventional short form:
Laos

local long form:
Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao

local short form:
none
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 kip (LAK) dong (VND)
Death rate 13.02 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) 6.14 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Debt - external $2.46 billion (1998 est.) $13.2 billion (2000)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission:
Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affairs Karen Brevard STEWART

embassy:
19 Rue Bartholonie, B. P. 114, Vientiane

mailing address:
American Embassy, Box V, APO AP 96546

telephone:
[856] (21) 212581, 212582, 212585

FAX:
[856] (21) 212584
chief of mission: Ambassador Raymond F. BURGHARDT


embassy: 7 Lang Ha Road, Ba Dinh District, Hanoi


mailing address: PSC 461, Box 400, FPO AP 96521-0002


telephone: [84] (4) 772-1500


FAX: [84] (4) 772-1510


consulate(s) general: Ho Chi Minh City
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission:
Ambassador VANG Rattanavong

chancery:
2222 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:
[1] (202) 332-6416

FAX:
[1] (202) 332-4923
chief of mission: Ambassador Nguyen Tam CHIEN


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


telephone: [1] (202) 861-0737


FAX: [1] (202) 861-0917


consulate(s) general: San Francisco
Disputes - international parts of the border with Thailand are indefinite Vietnam disputes several offshore islands with Cambodia, preventing delimitation of a maritime boundary; Cambodia accuses Vietnam of territorial encroachments and initiating armed border incidents in seven provinces; demarcation of boundaries with Laos is nearing completion, but Laos protests Vietnamese squatters; involved in a complex dispute over the Spratly Islands with China, Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, and possibly Brunei; maritime boundary with China in the Gulf of Tonkin still awaits ratification; Paracel Islands occupied by China but claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam; demarcation of the land boundary with China has commenced, but details of the alignment have not been made public
Economic aid - recipient $345 million (1999 est.) $2.1 billion in credits and grants pledged by international donors for 2000
Economy - overview The government of Laos - one of the few remaining official communist states - began decentralizing control and encouraging private enterprise in 1986. The results, starting from an extremely low base, were striking - growth averaged 7% during 1988-97. Reform efforts subsequently slowed, and GDP growth dropped an average of 3 percentage points. Because Laos depends heavily on its trade with Thailand, it was damaged by the regional financial crisis beginning in 1997. Government mismanagement deepened the crisis, and from June 1997 to June 1999 the Lao kip lost 87% of its value. Laos' foreign exchange problems peaked in September 1999 when the kip fell from 3,500 kip to the dollar to 9,000 kip to the dollar in a matter of weeks. Now that the currency has stabilized, however, the government seems content to let the current situation persist, despite limited government revenue and foreign exchange reserves. A landlocked country with a primitive infrastructure, Laos has no railroads, a rudimentary road system, and limited external and internal telecommunications. Electricity is available in only a few urban areas. Subsistence agriculture accounts for half of GDP and provides 80% of total employment. For the foreseeable future the economy will continue to depend on aid from the IMF and other international sources; Japan is currently the largest bilateral aid donor; aid from the former USSR/Eastern Europe has been cut sharply. 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 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 then rose to 6.8% in 2000 and dropped back to 4.7% in 2001 against the background of global recession. 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. Meanwhile, Vietnamese authorities have moved slowly in implementing the structural reforms needed to revitalize the economy and produce more competitive, export-driven industries. The US-Vietnam Bilateral Trade Agreement entered into force near the end of 2001 and is expected to significantly increase Vietnam's exports to the US. The US is assisting Vietnam with implementing the legal and structural reforms called for in the agreement.
Electricity - consumption 173.6 million kWh (1999) 23.97 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports 705 million kWh (1999) 0 kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports 142 million kWh (1999) 0 kWh (2000)
Electricity - production 792 million kWh (1999) 25.775 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel:
2.78%

hydro:
97.22%

nuclear:
0%

other:
0% (1999)
fossil fuel: 41%


hydro: 59%


nuclear: 0%


other: 0% (2000)
Elevation extremes lowest point:
Mekong River 70 m

highest point:
Phou Bia 2,817 m
lowest point: South China Sea 0 m


highest point: Fan Si Pan 3,144 m
Environment - current issues unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; a majority of the population does not have access to potable water 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, Desertification, Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection

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 Lao Loum (lowland) 68%, Lao Theung (upland) 22%, Lao Soung (highland) including the Hmong ("Meo") and the Yao (Mien) 9%, ethnic Vietnamese/Chinese 1% Vietnamese 85%-90%, Chinese, Hmong, Thai, Khmer, Cham, mountain groups
Exchange rates kips per US dollar - 7,578.00 (December 2000), 7,102.03 (1999), 3,298.33 (1998), 1,259.98 (1997), 921.02 (1996) dong per US dollar - 15,085 (January 2002), 14,725 (2001), 14,168 (2000), 13,943 (1999), 13,268 (1998), 11,683 (1997)
Executive branch chief of state:
President Gen. KHAMTAI Siphandon (since 26 February 1998) and Vice President Lt. Gen. CHOUMMALI Saignason (since NA March 2001)

head of government:
Prime Minister BOUNGNANG Volachit (since NA March 2001); Deputy Prime Ministers THONGLOUN Sisolit (since NA March 2001), SOMSAVAT Lengsavat (since 26 February 1998)

cabinet:
Council of Ministers appointed by the president, approved by the National Assembly

elections:
president elected by the National Assembly for a five-year term; election last held 21 December 1997 (next to be held NA 2002); prime minister appointed by the president with the approval of the National Assembly for a five-year term

election results:
KHAMTAI Siphandon elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - NA%
chief of state: President Tran Duc LUONG (since 24 September 1997)


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 Vu KHOAN (since NA) 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 24 September 1997 (next to be held when National Assembly meets following legislative elections in May 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 $323 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) $15.1 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.)
Exports - commodities wood products, garments, electricity, coffee, tin crude oil, marine products, rice, coffee, rubber, tea, garments, shoes
Exports - partners Vietnam, Thailand, Germany, France, Belgium Japan 18.1%, China 10.6%, Australia 8.8%, Singapore 6.1%, Taiwan 5.2%, Germany 5.1%, US 5.1% (2000)
Fiscal year 1 October - 30 September calendar year
Flag description three horizontal bands of red (top), blue (double width), and red with a large white disk centered in the blue band red with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center
GDP purchasing power parity - $9 billion (2000 est.) purchasing power parity - $168.1 billion (2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture:
51%

industry:
22%

services:
27% (1999 est.)
agriculture: 25%


industry: 35%


services: 40% (2000 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2000 est.) purchasing power parity - $2,100 (2001 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 4% (2000 est.) 4.7% (2001 est.)
Geographic coordinates 18 00 N, 105 00 E 16 00 N, 106 00 E
Geography - note landlocked extending 1,650 km north to south, the country is only 50 km across at its narrowest point
Highways total:
14,000 km

paved:
3,360 km

unpaved:
10,640 km (1991)
total: 93,300 km


paved: 23,418 km


unpaved: 69,882 km (1996)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%:
4.2%

highest 10%:
26.4% (1992)
lowest 10%: 4%


highest 10%: 30% (1998)
Illicit drugs world's third-largest illicit opium producer (estimated cultivation in 1999 - 21,800 hectares, a 16% decrease over 1998; estimated potential production in 1999 - 140 metric tons, about the same as in 1998); potential heroin producer; transshipment point for heroin and methamphetamine produced in Burma; illicit producer of cannabis minor producer of opium poppy; probable minor transit point for Southeast Asian heroin; domestic opium/heroin/methamphetamine addiction problems
Imports $540 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) $15.3 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.)
Imports - commodities machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel machinery and equipment, petroleum products, fertilizer, steel products, raw cotton, grain, cement, motorcycles
Imports - partners Thailand, Japan, Vietnam, China, Singapore, Hong Kong Singapore 17.7%, Japan 14.4%, Taiwan 12.1%, South Korea 11.1%, China 9.1%, Thailand 5.2%, Hong Kong 3.9% (2000)
Independence 19 July 1949 (from France) 2 September 1945 (from France)
Industrial production growth rate 7.5% (1999 est.) 10.4% (2001 est.)
Industries tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism food processing, garments, shoes, machine building, mining, cement, chemical fertilizer, glass, tires, oil, coal, steel, paper
Infant mortality rate 92.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) 29.34 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 33% (2000 est.) -0.3% (2001 est.)
International organization participation ACCT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) ACCT, APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CCC, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 1 (2000) 5 (2000)
Irrigated land 1,250 sq km (1993 est.)

note:
rainy season irrigation - 2,169 sq km; dry season irrigation - 750 sq km (1998 est.)
30,000 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch People's Supreme Court (the president of the People's Supreme Court is elected by the National Assembly on the recommendation of the National Assembly Standing Committee; the vice president of the People's Supreme Court and the judges are appointed by the National Assembly Standing Committee) 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 million - 1.5 million 38.2 million (1998 est.)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 80% (1997 est.) agriculture 67%, industry and services 33% (1997 est.)
Land boundaries total:
5,083 km

border countries:
Burma 235 km, Cambodia 541 km, China 423 km, Thailand 1,754 km, Vietnam 2,130 km
total: 4,639 km


border countries: Cambodia 1,228 km, China 1,281 km, Laos 2,130 km
Land use arable land:
3%

permanent crops:
0%

permanent pastures:
3%

forests and woodland:
54%

other:
40% (1993 est.)
arable land: 17.41%


permanent crops: 4.71%


other: 77.88% (1998 est.)
Languages Lao (official), French, English, and various ethnic languages 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 traditional customs, French legal norms and procedures, and Socialist practice based on communist legal theory and French civil law system
Legislative branch unicameral National Assembly (99 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms; note - by presidential decree, on 27 October 1997, the number of seats increased from 85 to 99)

elections:
last held 21 December 1997 (next to be held NA 2002)

election results:
percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - LPRP or LPRP-approved (independent, non-party members) 99
unicameral National Assembly or Quoc-Hoi (498 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)


elections: last held 19 May 2002 (next to be held 2007)


election results: percent of vote by party - CPV 90%, other 10% (the 10% are not CPV members but are approved by the CPV to stand for election); seats by party - CPV 447, CPV-approved 51
Life expectancy at birth total population:
53.48 years

male:
51.58 years

female:
55.44 years (2001 est.)
total population: 69.86 years


male: 67.4 years


female: 72.5 years (2002 est.)
Literacy definition:
age 15 and over can read and write

total population:
57%

male:
70%

female:
44% (1999 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 93.7%


male: 96.5%


female: 91.2% (1995 est.)
Location Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam Southeastern Asia, bordering the Gulf of Thailand, Gulf of Tonkin, and South China Sea, alongside China, Laos, and Cambodia
Map references Southeast Asia Southeast Asia
Maritime claims none (landlocked) 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:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,370 GRT/3,000 DWT

ships by type:
cargo 1 (2000 est.)
total: 153 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 782,912 GRT/1,173,186 DWT


ships by type: bulk 9, cargo 113, chemical tanker 1, combination bulk 1, container 5, liquefied gas 2, petroleum tanker 20, refrigerated cargo 2


note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Cambodia 1, Japan 1, Singapore 1, United Kingdom 2 (2002 est.)
Military branches Lao People's Army (LPA; includes riverine element), Air Force, National Police Department People's Army of Vietnam (includes Ground Forces, People's Navy Command [including Naval Infantry], Air and Air Defense Force, Coast Guard)
Military expenditures - dollar figure $55 million (FY98) $650 million (FY98)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 4.2% (FY96/97) 2.5% (FY98)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49:
1,319,537 (2001 est.)
males age 15-49: 22,220,891 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49:
710,627 (2001 est.)
males age 15-49: 13,978,653 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - military age 18 years of age 17 years of age (2002 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually males:
64,437 (2001 est.)
males: 961,124 (2002 est.)
National holiday Republic Day, 2 December (1975) Independence Day, 2 September (1945)
Nationality noun:
Lao(s) or Laotian(s)

adjective:
Lao or Laotian
noun: Vietnamese (singular and plural)


adjective: Vietnamese
Natural hazards floods, droughts, and blight occasional typhoons (May to January) with extensive flooding, especially in the Mekong River delta
Natural resources timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones phosphates, coal, manganese, bauxite, chromate, offshore oil and gas deposits, forests, hydropower
Net migration rate 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) -0.47 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Pipelines petroleum products 136 km petroleum products 150 km
Political parties and leaders Lao People's Revolutionary Party or LPRP [KHAMTAI Siphandon, party president]; other parties proscribed only party - Communist Party of Vietnam or CPV [Nong Duc MANH, general secretary]
Political pressure groups and leaders noncommunist political groups proscribed; most opposition leaders fled the country in 1975 none
Population 5,635,967 (July 2001 est.) 81,098,416 (July 2002 est.)
Population below poverty line 46.1% (1993 est.) 37% (1998 est.)
Population growth rate 2.48% (2001 est.) 1.43% (2002 est.)
Ports and harbors none Cam Ranh, Da Nang, Haiphong, Ho Chi Minh City, Ha Long, Quy Nhon, Nha Trang, Vinh, Vung Tau
Radio broadcast stations AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998) AM 65, FM 7, shortwave 29 (1999)
Radios 730,000 (1997) 8.2 million (1997)
Railways 0 km total: 3,142 km


standard gauge: 209 km 1.435-m gauge


narrow gauge: 2,625 km 1.000-m gauge


dual gauge: 308 km three-rail track combining 1.435-m and 1.000-m gauges (2001)
Religions Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% Buddhist, Hoa Hao, Cao Dai, Christian (predominantly Roman Catholic, some Protestant), indigenous beliefs, Muslim
Sex ratio at birth:
1.03 male(s)/female

under 15 years:
1.01 male(s)/female

15-64 years:
0.97 male(s)/female

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

total population:
0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.)
at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.65 male(s)/female


total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2002 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment:
service to general public is poor but improving, with over 20,000 telephones currently in service and an additional 48,000 expected by 2001; the government relies on a radiotelephone network to communicate with remote areas

domestic:
radiotelephone communications

international:
satellite earth station - 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region)
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 25,000 (1997) 2.6 million (2000)
Telephones - mobile cellular 4,915 (1997) 730,155 (2000)
Television broadcast stations 4 (1999) at least 7 (plus 13 repeaters) (1998)
Terrain mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus low, flat delta in south and north; central highlands; hilly, mountainous in far north and northwest
Total fertility rate 5.12 children born/woman (2001 est.) 2.44 children born/woman (2002 est.)
Unemployment rate 5.7% (1997 est.) 25% (1995 est.)
Waterways 4,587 km approximately

note:
primarily Mekong and tributaries; 2,897 additional km are intermittently navigable by craft drawing less than 0.5 m
17,702 km


note: more than 5,149 km are navigable at all times by vessels up to 1.8 m draft
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