Compare Latvia (2005) - Vietnam (2005)

Compare Latvia (2005) z Vietnam (2005)

	Latvia (2005)	Vietnam (2005)

Administrative divisions	26 counties (singular - rajons) and 7 municipalities: Aizkraukles Rajons, Aluksnes Rajons, Balvu Rajons, Bauskas Rajons, Cesu Rajons, Daugavpils, Daugavpils Rajons, Dobeles Rajons, Gulbenes Rajons, Jekabpils Rajons, Jelgava, Jelgavas Rajons, Jurmala, Kraslavas Rajons, Kuldigas Rajons, Liepaja, Liepajas Rajons, Limbazu Rajons, Ludzas Rajons, Madonas Rajons, Ogres Rajons, Preilu Rajons, Rezekne, Rezeknes Rajons, Riga, Rigas Rajons, Saldus Rajons, Talsu Rajons, Tukuma Rajons, Valkas Rajons, Valmieras Rajons, Ventspils, Ventspils Rajons	59 provinces (tinh, singular and plural) and 5 municipalities (thu do, singular and plural) provinces: 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, Cao Bang, Dac Lak, Dac Nong, Dien Bien, Dong Nai, Dong Thap, Gia Lai, Ha Giang, Hai Duong, Ha Nam, Ha Tay, Ha Tinh, Hau Giang, Hoa Binh, 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 municipalities: Can Tho, Da Nang, Hai Phong, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh
Age structure	0-14 years: 14.4% (male 169,284/female 161,648) 15-64 years: 69.4% (male 770,839/female 819,309) 65 years and over: 16.1% (male 120,306/female 248,851) (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) (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products	grain, sugar beets, potatoes, vegetables; beef, pork, milk, eggs; fish	paddy rice, coffee, fish and seafood, rubber, cotton, tea, pepper, soybeans, cashews, sugar cane, peanuts, bananas, poultry
Airports	50 (2004 est.)	24 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 26 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 16 (2004 est.)	total: 21 over 3,047 m: 6 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 9 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 24 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 20 (2004 est.)	total: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Area	total: 64,589 sq km land: 63,589 sq km water: 1,000 sq km	total: 329,560 sq km land: 325,360 sq km water: 4,200 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly larger than West Virginia	slightly larger than New Mexico
Background	After a brief period of independence between the two World Wars, Latvia was annexed by the USSR in 1940. It reestablished its independence in 1991 following the breakup of the Soviet Union. Although the last Russian troops left in 1994, the status of the Russian minority (some 30% of the population) remains of concern to Moscow. Latvia joined both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004.	The conquest of Vietnam by France began in 1858 and was completed by 1884. It became part of French Indochina in 1887. 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. Despite the return of peace, for over two decades the country experienced little economic growth because of conservative leadership policies. Since 2001, Vietnamese authorities have committed to economic liberalization and enacted structural reforms needed to modernize the economy and to produce more competitive, export-driven industries. The country continues to experience protests from the Montagnard ethnic minority population of the Central Highlands over loss of land to Vietnamese settlers and religious persecution.
Birth rate	9.04 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)	17.07 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Budget	revenues: $4.231 billion expenditures: $4.504 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)	revenues: $10.66 billion expenditures: $13.09 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.8 billion (2004 est.)
Capital	Riga	Hanoi
Climate	maritime; wet, moderate winters	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	531 km	3,444 km (excludes islands)
Constitution	15 February 1922; an October 1998 amendment on Fundamental Human Rights replaced the 1991 Constitutional Law, which had supplemented the constitution	15 April 1992
Country name	conventional long form: Republic of Latvia conventional short form: Latvia local long form: Latvijas Republika local short form: Latvija former: Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic	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
Death rate	13.7 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)	6.2 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Debt - external	$7.368 billion (2004 est.)	$16.55 billion (2004 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Catherine TODD-BAILEY embassy: 7 Raina Boulevard, Riga LV-1510 mailing address: American Embassy Riga, PSC 78, Box Riga, APO AE 09723 telephone: [371] 703-6200 FAX: [371] 782-0047	chief of mission: Ambassador Michael W. MARINE 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 Maris RIEKSTINS chancery: 4325 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20011 telephone: [1] (202) 726-8213, 8214 FAX: [1] (202) 726-6785	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	the Latvian-Russian boundary treaty of 1997 remains unsigned and unratified with Russia linking it to better Latvian treatment of ethnic Russians and Latvian politicians demanding Russian agreement to a declaration that admits Soviet aggression during the Second World War and other issues; the Latvian parliament has not ratified its 1998 maritime boundary treaty with Lithuania, primarily due to concerns over oil exploration rights; as a member state that forms part of the EU's external border, Latvia must implement the strict Schengen border rules	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; in 2004 Laotian-Vietnamese boundary commission agrees to erect missing markers in two adjoining provinces; demarcation of the China-Vietnam boundary proceeds slowly and although the maritime boundary delimitation and fisheries agreements were ratified in June 2004, implementation has been delayed; China occupies Paracel Islands also claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan; involved in complex dispute with China, Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, and possibly Brunei over the Spratly Islands; 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
Economic aid - recipient	$96.2 million (1995)	$2.8 billion in credits and grants pledged by international donors for 2000 (2004)
Economy - overview	Latvia's transitional economy recovered from the 1998 Russian financial crisis, largely due to the government's budget stringency and a gradual reorientation of exports toward EU countries, lessening Latvia's trade dependency on Russia. The majority of companies, banks, and real estate have been privatized, although the state still holds sizable stakes in a few large enterprises. Latvia officially joined the World Trade Organization in February 1999. EU membership, a top foreign policy goal, came in May 2004. The current account and internal government deficits remain major concerns, but the government's efforts to increase efficiency in revenue collection may lessen the budget deficit. A growing perception that many of Latvia's banks facilitate illicit activity could damage the country's vibrant financial sector.	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. Substantial progress was achieved from 1986 to 1997 in moving forward from an extremely low level of development and significantly reducing poverty. Growth averaged around 9% per year from 1993 to 1997. The 1997 Asian financial crisis highlighted the problems in the Vietnamese economy and temporarily allowed opponents of reform to slow progress towards a market oriented economy. GDP growth of 8.5% in 1997 fell to 6% in 1998 and 5% in 1999. Growth then rose to 7% in 2000-04 even against the background of global recession. Since 2001, however, 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. However, equitization of state-owned enterprises and reduction in the proportion of non-performing loans has fallen behind schedule. Vietnam's membership in the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) and entry into force of the US-Vietnam Bilateral Trade in December 2001 have led to even more rapid changes in Vietnam's trade and economic regime. Vietnam's exports to the US doubled in 2002 and again in 2003. Vietnam is working toward accession to the WTO in 2005. Among other benefits, accession will allow Vietnam to take advantage of the phase out of the Agreement on Textiles and Clothing, which eliminated quotas on textiles and clothing for WTO partners on 1 January 2005. Vietnam is working to promote job creation to keep up with the country's high population growth rate. However, in 2004, high levels of inflation prompted Vietnamese authorities to tighten monetary and fiscal policies.
Electricity - consumption	5.829 billion kWh (2002)	32.06 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports	1.1 billion kWh (2002)	0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports	2.7 billion kWh (2002)	0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - production	4.547 billion kWh (2002)	34.48 billion kWh (2002)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m highest point: Gaizinkalns 312 m	lowest point: South China Sea 0 m highest point: Fan Si Pan 3,144 m
Environment - current issues	Latvia's environment has benefited from a shift to service industries after the country regained independence; the main environmental priorities are improvement of drinking water quality and sewage system, household, and hazardous waste management, as well as reduction of air pollution; in 2001, Latvia closed the EU accession negotiation chapter on environment committing to full enforcement of EU environmental directives by 2010	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: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups	Latvian 57.7%, Russian 29.6%, Belarusian 4.1%, Ukrainian 2.7%, Polish 2.5%, Lithuanian 1.4%, other 2% (2002)	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)
Exchange rates	lati per US dollar - 0.5402 (2004), 0.5715 (2003), 0.6182 (2002), 0.6279 (2001), 0.6065 (2000)	dong per US dollar - 15,746 (2004), 15,510 (2003), 15,280 (2002), 14,725 (2001), 14,168 (2000)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Vaira VIKE-FREIBERGA (since 8 July 1999) head of government: Prime Minister Aigars KALVITIS (since 2 December 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister and appointed by the Parliament elections: president reelected by Parliament for a four-year term; election last held 20 June 2003 (next to be held by June 2007); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Vaira VIKE-FREIBERGA reelected president; parliamentary vote - Vaira VIKE-FREIBERGA 88 of 94 votes cast	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 (8 August 2002) and Pham Gia KHIEM (since 29 September 1997) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by president based on proposal of prime minister and ratification of National Assembly elections: president elected by the National Assembly from among its members for a five-year term; election last held 25 July 2002 (next to be held when National Assembly meets following legislative elections in 2007); 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	NA	NA
Exports - commodities	wood and wood products, machinery and equipment, metals, textiles, foodstuffs	crude oil, marine products, rice, coffee, rubber, tea, garments, shoes
Exports - partners	UK 12.8%, Germany 12%, Sweden 10%, Lithuania 9.1%, Estonia 8%, Russia 6.4%, Denmark 5.4% (2004)	US 20.2%, Japan 13.6%, China 9%, Australia 7%, Germany 5.9%, Singapore 4.8%, UK 4.6% (2004)
Fiscal year	calendar year	calendar year
Flag description	three horizontal bands of maroon (top), white (half-width), and maroon	red with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 4.4% industry: 24.8% services: 70.8% (2004 est.)	agriculture: 21.8% industry: 40.1% services: 38.1% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $11,500 (2004 est.)	purchasing power parity - $2,700 (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	7.6% (2004 est.)	7.7% (2004 est.)
Geographic coordinates	57 00 N, 25 00 E	16 00 N, 106 00 E
Geography - note	most of the country is composed of fertile, low-lying plains, with some hills in the east	extending 1,650 km north to south, the country is only 50 km across at its narrowest point
Highways	total: 60,472 km paved: 57,206 km unpaved: 3,265 km (2002)	total: 93,300 km paved: 23,418 km unpaved: 69,882 km (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 2.9% highest 10%: 25.9% (1998)	lowest 10%: 3.6% highest 10%: 29.9% (1998)
Illicit drugs	transshipment point for opiates and cannabis from Central and Southwest Asia to Western Europe and Scandinavia and Latin American cocaine and some synthetics from Western Europe to CIS; vulnerable to money laundering despite improved legislation due to nascent enforcement capabilities and comparatively weak regulation of offshore companies and the gaming industry; organized crime (including counterfeiting, corruption, extortion, stolen cars, and prostitution) accounts for most laundered proceeds	minor producer of opium poppy; probable minor transit point for Southeast Asian heroin; domestic opium/heroin/methamphetamine addiction problems
Imports	NA	NA
Imports - commodities	machinery and equipment, chemicals, fuels, vehicles	machinery and equipment, petroleum products, fertilizer, steel products, raw cotton, grain, cement, motorcycles
Imports - partners	Germany 13.9%, Lithuania 12.2%, Russia 8.7%, Estonia 7%, Finland 6.3%, Sweden 6.1%, Poland 5.4%, Belarus 4.8% (2004)	China 13.7%, Taiwan 11.3%, South Korea 10.8%, Japan 10.5%, Singapore 10.5%, Thailand 6.2%, Hong Kong 4% (2004)
Independence	21 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)	2 September 1945 (from France)
Industrial production growth rate	8.5% (2004 est.)	16% (2004 est.)
Industries	buses, vans, street and railroad cars, synthetic fibers, agricultural machinery, fertilizers, washing machines, radios, electronics, pharmaceuticals, processed foods, textiles; note - dependent on imports for energy and raw materials	food processing, garments, shoes, machine-building, mining, cement, chemical fertilizer, glass, tires, oil, coal, steel, paper
Infant mortality rate	total: 9.55 deaths/1,000 live births male: 11.55 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.45 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)	total: 25.95 deaths/1,000 live births male: 26.35 deaths/1,000 live births female: 25.52 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	6% (2004 est.)	9.5% (2004 est.)
International organization participation	Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU (new member), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NATO, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WCO, WEU (member affiliate), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO	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)
Irrigated land	200 sq km note: land in Latvia is often too wet, and in need of drainage, not irrigation; approximately 16,000 sq km or 85% of agricultural land has been improved by drainage (1998 est.)	30,000 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court (judges' appointments are confirmed by Parliament)	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	1.17 million (2004 est.)	42.98 million (2004 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture 15%, industry 25%, services 60% (2000 est.)	agriculture 63%, industry and services 37% (2000 est.)
Land boundaries	total: 1,150 km border countries: Belarus 141 km, Estonia 339 km, Lithuania 453 km, Russia 217 km	total: 4,639 km border countries: Cambodia 1,228 km, China 1,281 km, Laos 2,130 km
Land use	arable land: 29.67% permanent crops: 0.47% other: 69.86% (2001)	arable land: 19.97% permanent crops: 5.95% other: 74.08% (2001)
Languages	Latvian (official) 58.2%, Russian 37.5%, Lithuanian and other 4.3% (2000 census)	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 civil law system	based on communist legal theory and French civil law system
Legislative branch	unicameral Parliament or Saeima (100 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 5 October 2002 (next to be held NA October 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - JL 23.9%, PCTVL 18.9%, TP 16.7%, ZZS 9.5%, First Party 7.6%, LNNK 5.4%; seats by party - JL 26, PCTVL 24, TP 21, ZZS 12, First Party 10, LNNK 7	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: 71.05 years male: 65.78 years female: 76.6 years (2005 est.)	total population: 70.61 years male: 67.82 years female: 73.6 years (2005 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99.8% male: 99.8% female: 99.8% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 90.3% male: 93.9% female: 86.9% (2002)
Location	Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Estonia and Lithuania	Southeastern Asia, bordering the Gulf of Thailand, Gulf of Tonkin, and South China Sea, alongside China, Laos, and Cambodia
Map references	Europe	Southeast Asia
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
Merchant marine	total: 19 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 53,153 GRT/37,414 DWT by type: cargo 7, chemical tanker 1, liquefied gas 2, passenger/cargo 3, petroleum tanker 5, roll on/roll off 1 registered in other countries: 86 (2005)	total: 194 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,170,621 GRT/1,798,376 DWT by type: bulk carrier 18, cargo 142, chemical tanker 3, container 2, liquefied gas 4, petroleum tanker 22, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 1 registered in other countries: 11 (2005)
Military branches	Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force, Border Guard, Home Guard (Zemessardze)	People's Army of Vietnam: Ground Forces, People's Navy Command (includes Naval Infantry), Air and Air Defense Force, Coast Guard
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$87 million (FY01)	$650 million (FY98)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	1.2% (FY01)	2.5% (FY98)
National holiday	Independence Day, 18 November (1918); note - 18 November 1918 is the date Latvia declared itself independent from Soviet Russia; 4 May 1990 is when it declared the renewal of independence; 21 August 1991 is the date of de facto independence from the Soviet Union	Independence Day, 2 September (1945)
Nationality	noun: Latvian(s) adjective: Latvian	noun: Vietnamese (singular and plural) adjective: Vietnamese
Natural hazards	NA	occasional typhoons (May to January) with extensive flooding, especially in the Mekong River delta
Natural resources	peat, limestone, dolomite, amber, hydropower, wood, arable land	phosphates, coal, manganese, bauxite, chromate, offshore oil and gas deposits, forests, hydropower
Net migration rate	-2.24 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)	-0.43 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Pipelines	gas 1,097 km; oil 409 km; refined products 415 km (2004)	condensate/gas 432 km; gas 210 km; oil 3 km; refined products 206 km (2004)
Political parties and leaders	First Party of Latvia or LPP [Juris LUJANS]; For Human Rights in a United Latvia or PCTVL [Tatjana ZDANOKA, Jakovs PLINERS]; For the Fatherland and Freedom/Latvian National Independence Movement or TB/LNNK [Janis STRAUME]; Harmony Center or SC [Sergejs DOLGOPOLOVS]; Latvian Green Party or LZP [Indulis EMSIS, Viesturs SILENIEKS, Raimonds VEJONIS]; Latvian Farmer's Union or LZS [Augusts BRIGMANIS]; Latvian Social Democratic Workers Party (Social Democrats) or LSDSP [Juris BOJARS]; Latvian Socialist Party or LSP [Alfreds RUBIKS]; Latvia's Way or LC [Ivars GODMANIS]; New Democrats or JD [Maris GULBIS]; New Era Party or JL [Einars REPSE]; People's Harmony Party or TSP [Aivars DATAVS]; People's Party or TP [Atis SLAKTERIS]; Social Democratic Union or SDS [Egils BALDZENS]	only party - Communist Party of Vietnam or CPV [Nong Duc MANH, general secretary]
Political pressure groups and leaders	Headquarters for the Protection of Russian Schools (SHTAB) [Aleksandr KAZAKOV]	none
Population	2,290,237 (July 2005 est.)	83,535,576 (July 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA	28.9% (2002 est.)
Population growth rate	-0.69% (2005 est.)	1.04% (2005 est.)
Ports and harbors	Riga, Ventspils	Hai Phong, Ho Chi Minh City
Radio broadcast stations	AM 8, FM 56, shortwave 1 (1998)	AM 65, FM 7, shortwave 29 (1999)
Railways	total: 2,303 km broad gauge: 2,270 km 1.520-m gauge (257 km electrified) narrow gauge: 33 km 0.750-m gauge (2004)	total: 2,600 km standard gauge: 178 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 2,169 km 1.000-m gauge dual gauge: 253 km three-rail track combining 1.435-m and 1.000-m gauges (2004)
Religions	Lutheran, Roman Catholic, Russian Orthodox	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)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.48 male(s)/female total population: 0.86 male(s)/female (2005 est.)	at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.08 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.64 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal for Latvian citizens	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: inadequate, but is being modernized to provide an international capability independent of the Moscow international switch; more facilities are being installed for individual use domestic: expansion underway in intercity trunk line connections, rural exchanges, and mobile systems; still many unsatisfied subscriber applications international: country code - 371; international connections are now available via cable and a satellite earth station at Riga, enabling direct connections for most calls (1998)	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; main lines have been substantially increased, and the use of mobile telephones is growing rapidly international: country code - 84; satellite earth stations - 2 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region)
Telephones - main lines in use	653,900 (2003)	4.402 million (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular	1,219,600 (2003)	2.742 million (2003)
Television broadcast stations	44 (plus 31 repeaters) (1995)	at least 7 (plus 13 repeaters) (1998)
Terrain	low plain	low, flat delta in south and north; central highlands; hilly, mountainous in far north and northwest
Total fertility rate	1.26 children born/woman (2005 est.)	1.94 children born/woman (2005 est.)
Unemployment rate	8.8% (2004 est.)	1.9% (2004 est.)
Waterways	300 km (2004)	17,702 km (5,000 km navigable by vessels up to 1.8 m draft) (2004)

Sitemap: Compare countries listing (map site) | Country listing (map site)
Links: Add to favorites | Information about this website | Stats | Polityka prywatnosci
This page was generated in ##czas## s. Size this page: ##rozmiar_strony## kB.