Romania (2001) | Vietnam (2004) | |
Administrative divisions | 40 counties (judete, singular - judet) and 1 municipality* (municipiu); Alba, Arad, Arges, Bacau, Bihor, Bistrita-Nasaud, Botosani, Braila, Brasov, Bucuresti*, Buzau, Calarasi, Caras-Severin, Cluj, Constanta, Covasna, Dimbovita, Dolj, Galati, Gorj, Giurgiu, Harghita, Hunedoara, Ialomita, Iasi, Maramures, Mehedinti, Mures, Neamt, Olt, Prahova, Salaj, Satu Mare, Sibiu, Suceava, Teleorman, Timis, Tulcea, Vaslui, Vilcea, Vrancea | 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, Ha Noi, Ho Chi Minh |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
17.95% (male 2,054,323; female 1,959,196) 15-64 years: 68.51% (male 7,605,751; female 7,715,434) 65 years and over: 13.54% (male 1,255,880; female 1,773,438) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 29.4% (male 12,524,098; female 11,807,763)
15-64 years: 65% (male 26,475,156; female 27,239,543) 65 years and over: 5.6% (male 1,928,568; female 2,714,390) (2004 est.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, corn, sugar beets, sunflower seed, potatoes, grapes; eggs, sheep | paddy rice, corn, potatoes, rubber, soybeans, coffee, tea, bananas, sugar; poultry, pigs, fish |
Airports | 62 (2000 est.) | 19 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
25 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 10 1,524 to 2,437 m: 12 (2000 est.) |
total: 16
over 3,047 m: 6 2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 (2003 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
37 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 23 (2000 est.) |
total: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2003 est.) |
Area | total:
237,500 sq km land: 230,340 sq km water: 7,160 sq km |
total: 329,560 sq km
land: 325,360 sq km water: 4,200 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Oregon | slightly larger than New Mexico |
Background | Soviet occupation following World War II led to the formation of a communist "peoples republic" in 1947 and the abdication of the king. The decades-long rule of President Nicolae CEAUSESCU became increasingly draconian through the 1980s. He was overthrown and executed in late 1989. Former communists dominated the government until 1996 when they were swept from power. Much economic restructuring remains to be carried out before Romania can achieve its hope of joining the EU. | 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 | 10.8 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 19.58 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$11.7 billion expenditures: $12.4 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.) |
revenues: $8.689 billion
expenditures: $9.718 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.8 billion (2003 est.) |
Capital | Bucharest | Hanoi |
Climate | temperate; cold, cloudy winters with frequent snow and fog; sunny summers with frequent showers and thunderstorms | 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 | 225 km | 3,444 km (excludes islands) |
Constitution | 8 December 1991 | 15 April 1992 |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Romania local long form: none local short form: Romania |
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 | leu (ROL) | dong (VND) |
Death rate | 12.28 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 6.14 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Debt - external | $9.3 billion (2000 est.) | $14.69 billion (2003) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador James C. ROSAPEPE embassy: Strada Tudor Arghezi 7-9, Bucharest mailing address: American Embassy Bucharest, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-5260 (pouch) telephone: [40] (1) 210 40 42 FAX: [40] (1) 210 03 95 branch office(s): Cluj-Napoca |
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 (vacant) chancery: 1607 23rd Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 332-4846, 4848, 4851 FAX: [1] (202) 232-4748 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York |
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 | none | demarcation of the land boundary with China continues, but maritime boundary and joint fishing zone agreement remains unimplemented; Cambodia and Laos protest Vietnamese squatters and armed encroachments along border; 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 |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $2.8 billion in credits and grants pledged by international donors for 2000 (2004) |
Economy - overview | Romania, one of the poorest countries in Central and Eastern Europe, began the transition from communism in 1989 with a largely obsolete industrial base and a pattern of output unsuited to the country's needs. Over the past decade economic restructuring has lagged behind most other countries in the region. Consequently, living standards have continued to fall - real wages are down over 40%. Corruption too has worsened. The EU ranks Romania last among enlargement candidates, and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) rates Romania's transition progress the region's worst. The country emerged in 2000 from a punishing three-year recession thanks to strong demand in EU export markets. A new government elected in November 2000 promises to promote economic reform. Bucharest hopes to receive financial and technical assistance from international financial institutions and Western governments; negotiations over a new IMF standby agreement are to begin early in 2001. If reform stalls, Romania's ability to borrow from both public and private sources could quickly dry up, leading to another financial crisis. | 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 would lead to disaster. GDP growth of 8.5% in 1997 fell to 6% in 1998 and 5% in 1999. Growth then rose to 6% to 7% in 2000-02 even 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. Since the Party elected new leadership in 2001, Vietnamese authorities have reaffirmed their commitment to economic liberalization and have moved to implement the structural reforms needed to modernize the economy and to 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 | 44.768 billion kWh (1999) | 27.71 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 1.935 billion kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 1.1 billion kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 49.036 billion kWh (1999) | 29.8 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
53.99% hydro: 36.18% nuclear: 9.81% other: 0.02% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Black Sea 0 m highest point: Moldoveanu 2,544 m |
lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Fan Si Pan 3,144 m |
Environment - current issues | soil erosion and degradation; water pollution; air pollution in south from industrial effluents; contamination of Danube delta wetlands | 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, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
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 | Romanian 89.5%, Hungarian 7.1%, Roma 1.8%, German 0.5%, Ukrainian 0.3%, other 0.8% (1992) | Vietnamese 85%-90%, Chinese, Hmong, Thai, Khmer, Cham, mountain groups |
Exchange rates | lei per US dollar - 26,243.0 (January 2001), 21,708.7 (2000), 15,332.8 (1999), 8,875.6 (1998), 7,167.9 (1997), 3,084.2 (1996); note - lei is the plural form of leu | dong per US dollar - 15,279.5 (2003), 15,279.5 (2002), 14,725.2 (2001), 14,167.7 (2000), 13,943.2 (1999) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Ion ILIESCU (since 20 December 2000) head of government: Prime Minister Adrian NASTASE (since 29 December 2000) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 26 November 2000, with runoff between the top two candidates held 10 December 2000 (next to be held NA November/December 2004); prime minister appointed by the president election results: percent of vote - Ion ILIESCU 66.84%, Corneliu Vadim TUDOR 33.16% |
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 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 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 | $11.2 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Exports - commodities | textiles and footwear 26%, metals and metal products 15%, machinery and equipment 11%, minerals and fuels 6% (1999) | crude oil, marine products, rice, coffee, rubber, tea, garments, shoes |
Exports - partners | Italy 23%, Germany 18%, France 6%, Turkey 5%, US (1999) | US 21.9%, Japan 13.8%, Australia 6.8%, China 6.5%, Germany 5.8%, Singapore 4.6%, UK 4.4% (2003) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, and red; the national coat of arms that used to be centered in the yellow band has been removed; now similar to the flag of Chad, also resembles the flags of Andorra and Moldova | red with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $132.5 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $203.7 billion (2003 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
13.9% industry: 32.6% services: 53.5% (2000) |
agriculture: 21.8%
industry: 39.7% services: 38.5% (2003 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $5,900 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,500 (2003 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2.2% (2000 est.) | 7.2% (2003 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 46 00 N, 25 00 E | 16 00 N, 106 00 E |
Geography - note | controls most easily traversable land route between the Balkans, Moldova, and Ukraine | extending 1,650 km north to south, the country is only 50 km across at its narrowest point |
Heliports | 1 (2000 est.) | - |
Highways | total:
153,359 km paved: 103,671 km (including 133 km of expressways) unpaved: 49,688 km (1998 est.) |
total: 93,300 km
paved: 23,418 km unpaved: 69,882 km (1999 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
3.8% highest 10%: 20.2% (1992) |
lowest 10%: 3.6%
highest 10%: 29.9% (1998) |
Illicit drugs | important transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin transiting the Balkan route and small amounts of Latin American cocaine bound for Western Europe | minor producer of opium poppy; probable minor transit point for Southeast Asian heroin; domestic opium/heroin/methamphetamine addiction problems |
Imports | $11.9 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | NA (2001) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment 23%, fuels and minerals 12%, chemicals 9%, textile and products 19% (1999) | machinery and equipment, petroleum products, fertilizer, steel products, raw cotton, grain, cement, motorcycles |
Imports - partners | Italy 20%, Germany 19%, France 7%, Russia 6% (1999) | China 13.7%, Taiwan 11.4%, Japan 11.3%, South Korea 11%, Singapore 10.4%, US 5.7%, Thailand 5.4%, Hong Kong 4.2% (2003) |
Independence | 1881 (from Turkey; republic proclaimed 30 December 1947) | 2 September 1945 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 8% (2000) | 16% (2003 est.) |
Industries | textiles and footwear, light machinery and auto assembly, mining, timber, construction materials, metallurgy, chemicals, food processing, petroleum refining | food processing, garments, shoes, machine-building, mining, cement, chemical fertilizer, glass, tires, oil, coal, steel, paper |
Infant mortality rate | 19.36 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 29.88 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 33.71 deaths/1,000 live births female: 25.77 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 45.7% (2000 est.) | 3.1% (2003 est.) |
International organization participation | ACCT, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC, CCC, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EU (applicant), FAO, G- 9, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MONUC, NAM (guest), NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UPU, WCL, WEU (associate partner), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC | ACCT (observer), APEC, 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) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 38 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 31,020 sq km (1993 est.) | 30,000 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court of Justice (judges are appointed by the president on the recommendation of the Superior Council of Magistrates) | 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 | 9.9 million (1999 est.) | 45.74 million (2003 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 40%, industry 25%, services 35% (1998) | agriculture 63%, industry and services 37% (2000 est.) |
Land boundaries | total:
2,508 km border countries: Bulgaria 608 km, Hungary 443 km, Moldova 450 km, Yugoslavia 476 km, Ukraine (north) 362 km, Ukraine (east) 169 km |
total: 4,639 km
border countries: Cambodia 1,228 km, China 1,281 km, Laos 2,130 km |
Land use | arable land:
41% permanent crops: 3% permanent pastures: 21% forests and woodland: 29% other: 6% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 19.97%
permanent crops: 5.95% other: 74.08% (2001) |
Languages | Romanian, Hungarian, German | Vietnamese (official), English (increasingly favored as a second language), some French, Chinese, and Khmer; mountain area languages (Mon-Khmer and Malayo-Polynesian) |
Legal system | former mixture of civil law system and communist legal theory; is now based on the constitution of France's Fifth Republic | based on communist legal theory and French civil law system |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament or Parlament consists of the Senate or Senat (140 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote on a proportional representation basis to serve four-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies or Adunarea Deputatilor (345 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote on a proportional representation basis to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 26 November 2000 (next to be held in the fall of 2004); Chamber of Deputies - last held 26 November 2000 (next to be held in the fall of 2004) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - PDSR 37.1%, PRM 21.0%, PD 7.6%, PNL 7.5%, UDMR 6.9%; seats by party - PDSR 65, PRM 37, PD 13, PNL 13, UDMR 12; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - PDSR 36.6%, PRM 19.5%, PD 7.0%, PNL, 6.9%, UDMR 6.8%; seats by party - PDSR 155, PRM 84, PD 31, PNL 30, UDMR 27, ethnic minorities 18 |
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:
70.16 years male: 66.36 years female: 74.19 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 70.35 years
male: 67.86 years female: 73.02 years (2004 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 97% male: 98% female: 95% (1992 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 90.3% male: 93.9% female: 86.9% (2002) |
Location | Southeastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Bulgaria and Ukraine | 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 | contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
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:
95 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 695,227 GRT/931,598 DWT ships by type: bulk 10, cargo 71, container 1, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 4, railcar carrier 2, roll on/roll off 4, specialized tanker 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 194 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,170,621 GRT/1,798,376 DWT
by type: bulk 16, cargo 135, chemical tanker 1, container 8, liquefied gas 4, petroleum tanker 25, refrigerated cargo 3, roll on/roll off 1, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: Cambodia 1, Germany 1, Japan 2, South Korea 1, United Kingdom 3 registered in other countries: 11 (2004 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, Paramilitary Forces, Civil Defense | People's Army of Vietnam: Ground Forces, People's Navy Command (including Naval Infantry), Air and Air Defense Force, Coast Guard |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $720 million (FY00) | $650 million (FY98) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.2% (FY00) | 2.5% (FY98) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
5,899,536 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 23,438,858 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
4,962,807 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 14,694,574 (2004 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 20 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
179,951 (2001 est.) |
males: 853,197 (2004 est.) |
National holiday | Unification Day (of Romania and Transylvania), 1 December (1918) | Independence Day, 2 September (1945) |
Nationality | noun:
Romanian(s) adjective: Romanian |
noun: Vietnamese (singular and plural)
adjective: Vietnamese |
Natural hazards | earthquakes most severe in south and southwest; geologic structure and climate promote landslides | occasional typhoons (May to January) with extensive flooding, especially in the Mekong River delta |
Natural resources | petroleum (reserves declining), timber, natural gas, coal, iron ore, salt, arable land, hydropower | phosphates, coal, manganese, bauxite, chromate, offshore oil and gas deposits, forests, hydropower |
Net migration rate | -0.6 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | -0.45 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 2,800 km; petroleum products 1,429 km; natural gas 6,400 km (1992) | condensate/gas 432 km; gas 210 km; oil 3 km; refined products 206 km (2004) |
Political parties and leaders | Democratic Party or PD [Petre ROMAN]; Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania or UDMR [Bela MARKO]; National Liberal Party or PNL [Mircea IONESCU-QUINTUS]; Party of Social Democracy in Romania or PDSR [Adrian NASTASE]; Romania Mare Party (Greater Romanian Party) or PRM [Corneliu Vadim TUDOR]; The Democratic Convention or CDR [Ion DIACONESCU] | only party - Communist Party of Vietnam or CPV [Nong Duc Manh, general secretary] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | various human rights and professional associations | none |
Population | 22,364,022 (July 2001 est.) | 82,689,518 (July 2004 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 44.5% (2000) | 37% (1998 est.) |
Population growth rate | -0.21% (2001 est.) | 1.3% (2004 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Braila, Constanta, Galati, Mangalia, Sulina, Tulcea | Cam Ranh, Da Nang, Haiphong, Ho Chi Minh City, Ha Long, Quy Nhon, Nha Trang, Vinh, Vung Tau |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 40, FM 202, shortwave 3 (1998) | AM 65, FM 7, shortwave 29 (1999) |
Radios | 7.2 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
11,385 km (3,888 km electrified) standard gauge: 10,898 km narrow gauge: 487 km (1996) |
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 (2003) |
Religions | Romanian Orthodox 70%, Roman Catholic 3%, Uniate Catholic 3%, Protestant 6%, unaffiliated 18% | 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: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
poor domestic service, but improving domestic: 90% of telephone network is automatic; trunk network is mostly microwave radio relay, with some fiber-optic cable; about one-third of exchange capacity is digital; roughly 3,300 villages have no service international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat; new digital, international, direct-dial exchanges operate in Bucharest; note - Romania is an active participant in several international telecommunication network projects (1999) |
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 | 3.777 million (1997) | 4.402 million (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 645,500 (1999) | 2.742 million (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 48 (plus 392 repeaters) (1995) | at least 7 (plus 13 repeaters) (1998) |
Terrain | central Transylvanian Basin is separated from the Plain of Moldavia on the east by the Carpathian Mountains and separated from the Walachian Plain on the south by the Transylvanian Alps | low, flat delta in south and north; central highlands; hilly, mountainous in far north and northwest |
Total fertility rate | 1.35 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.22 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 11.5% (1999) | 6.1% (2003 est.) |
Waterways | 1,724 km (1984) | 17,702 km (5,000 km navigable by vessels up to 1.8 m draft) (2004) |