Compare Vietnam (2004) - British Indian Ocean Territory (2006)

Compare Vietnam (2004) z British Indian Ocean Territory (2006)

	Vietnam (2004)	British Indian Ocean Territory (2006)

Administrative divisions	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: 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	paddy rice, corn, potatoes, rubber, soybeans, coffee, tea, bananas, sugar; poultry, pigs, fish	-
Airports	19 (2003 est.)	1 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 16 over 3,047 m: 6 2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 (2003 est.)	total: 1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2003 est.)	-
Area	total: 329,560 sq km land: 325,360 sq km water: 4,200 sq km	total: 54,400 sq km land: 60 sq km; Diego Garcia 44 sq km water: 54,340 sq km note: includes the entire Chagos Archipelago of 55 islands
Area - comparative	slightly larger than New Mexico	land area is about 0.3 times the size of Washington, DC
Background	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military aid to South Vietnam grew through the 1960s in an attempt to bolster the government, but US armed forces were withdrawn following a cease-fire agreement in 1973.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.	Established as a territory of the UK in 1965, a number of the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) islands were transferred to the Seychelles when it attained independence in 1976. Subsequently, BIOT has consisted only of the six main island groups comprising the Chagos Archipelago. The largest and most southerly of the islands, Diego Garcia, contains a joint UK-US naval support facility. All of the remaining islands are uninhabited. Former agricultural workers, earlier residents in the islands, were relocated primarily to Mauritius but also to the Seychelles, between 1967 and 1973. In 2000, a British High Court ruling invalidated the local immigration order that had excluded them from the archipelago, but upheld the special military status of Diego Garcia.
Birth rate	19.58 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)	-
Budget	revenues: $8.689 billion expenditures: $9.718 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.8 billion (2003 est.)	-
Capital	Hanoi	-
Climate	tropical in south; monsoonal in north with hot, rainy season (mid-May to mid-September) and warm, dry season (mid-October to mid-March)	tropical marine; hot, humid, moderated by trade winds
Coastline	3,444 km (excludes islands)	698 km
Constitution	15 April 1992	-
Country name	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	conventional long form: British Indian Ocean Territory conventional short form: none abbreviation: BIOT
Currency	dong (VND)	-
Death rate	6.14 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)	-
Debt - external	$14.69 billion (2003)	-
Dependency status	-	overseas territory of the UK; administered by a commissioner, resident in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London
Diplomatic representation from the US	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	none (overseas territory of the UK)
Diplomatic representation in the US	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	none (overseas territory of the UK)
Disputes - international	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	Mauritius and Seychelles claim the Chagos Archipelago including Diego Garcia; in 2001 the former inhabitants of the Chagos Archipelago, evicted in 1965 and now residing chiefly in Mauritius, were granted UK citizenship and the right to repatriation; the UK resists the Chagossians' demand for an immediate return to the islands; repatriation is complicated by the exclusive US military lease of Diego Garcia that restricts access to the largest island in the chain;
Economic aid - recipient	$2.8 billion in credits and grants pledged by international donors for 2000 (2004)	-
Economy - overview	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.	All economic activity is concentrated on the largest island of Diego Garcia, where joint UK-US defense facilities are located. Construction projects and various services needed to support the military installations are done by military and contract employees from the UK, Mauritius, the Philippines, and the US. There are no industrial or agricultural activities on the islands. When the Ilois return, they plan to reestablish sugarcane production and fishing. The country makes money by selling fishing licenses and postage stamps.
Electricity - consumption	27.71 billion kWh (2001)	NA kWh
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2001)	-
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2001)	-
Electricity - production	29.8 billion kWh (2001)	NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by the US military
Elevation extremes	lowest point: South China Sea 0 m highest point: Fan Si Pan 3,144 m	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Diego Garcia 15 m
Environment - current issues	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	NA
Environment - international 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	Vietnamese 85%-90%, Chinese, Hmong, Thai, Khmer, Cham, mountain groups	-
Exchange rates	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 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	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952) head of government: Commissioner Tony CROMBIE (since January 2004); Administrator Tony HUMPHRIES (since February 2005); note - both reside in the UK cabinet: NA elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; commissioner and administrator appointed by the monarch
Exports	NA (2001)	-
Exports - commodities	crude oil, marine products, rice, coffee, rubber, tea, garments, shoes	-
Exports - partners	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	-
Flag description	red with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center	white with six blue wavy horizontal stripes; the flag of the UK is in the upper hoist-side quadrant; the striped section bears a palm tree and yellow crown centered on the outer half of the flag
GDP	purchasing power parity - $203.7 billion (2003 est.)	-
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 21.8% industry: 39.7% services: 38.5% (2003 est.)	-
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $2,500 (2003 est.)	-
GDP - real growth rate	7.2% (2003 est.)	-
Geographic coordinates	16 00 N, 106 00 E	6 00 S, 71 30 E; note - Diego Garcia 7 20 S, 72 25 E
Geography - note	extending 1,650 km north to south, the country is only 50 km across at its narrowest point	archipelago of 55 islands; Diego Garcia, largest and southernmost island, occupies strategic location in central Indian Ocean; island is site of joint US-UK military facility
Highways	total: 93,300 km paved: 23,418 km unpaved: 69,882 km (1999 est.)	-
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 3.6% highest 10%: 29.9% (1998)	-
Illicit drugs	minor producer of opium poppy; probable minor transit point for Southeast Asian heroin; domestic opium/heroin/methamphetamine addiction problems	-
Imports	NA (2001)	-
Imports - commodities	machinery and equipment, petroleum products, fertilizer, steel products, raw cotton, grain, cement, motorcycles	-
Imports - partners	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	2 September 1945 (from France)	-
Industrial production growth rate	16% (2003 est.)	-
Industries	food processing, garments, shoes, machine-building, mining, cement, chemical fertilizer, glass, tires, oil, coal, steel, paper	-
Infant mortality rate	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)	3.1% (2003 est.)	-
International organization participation	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)	-
Irrigated land	30,000 sq km (1998 est.)	0 sq km
Judicial branch	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	45.74 million (2003 est.)	-
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture 63%, industry and services 37% (2000 est.)	-
Land boundaries	total: 4,639 km border countries: Cambodia 1,228 km, China 1,281 km, Laos 2,130 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 19.97% permanent crops: 5.95% other: 74.08% (2001)	arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2005)
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 communist legal theory and French civil law system	the laws of the UK, where applicable, apply
Legislative branch	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: 70.35 years male: 67.86 years female: 73.02 years (2004 est.)	-
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 90.3% male: 93.9% female: 86.9% (2002)	-
Location	Southeastern Asia, bordering the Gulf of Thailand, Gulf of Tonkin, and South China Sea, alongside China, Laos, and Cambodia	archipelago in the Indian Ocean, south of India, about one-half the way from Africa to Indonesia
Map references	Southeast Asia	Political Map of the World
Maritime claims	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	territorial sea: 3 nm exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine	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 - note	-	defense is the responsibility of the UK; the US lease on Diego Garcia expires in 2016
Military branches	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	$650 million (FY98)	-
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	2.5% (FY98)	-
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 23,438,858 (2004 est.)	-
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 14,694,574 (2004 est.)	-
Military manpower - reaching military age annually	males: 853,197 (2004 est.)	-
National holiday	Independence Day, 2 September (1945)	-
Nationality	noun: Vietnamese (singular and plural) adjective: Vietnamese	-
Natural hazards	occasional typhoons (May to January) with extensive flooding, especially in the Mekong River delta	NA
Natural resources	phosphates, coal, manganese, bauxite, chromate, offshore oil and gas deposits, forests, hydropower	coconuts, fish, sugarcane
Net migration rate	-0.45 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)	-
Pipelines	condensate/gas 432 km; gas 210 km; oil 3 km; refined products 206 km (2004)	-
Political parties and leaders	only party - Communist Party of Vietnam or CPV [Nong Duc Manh, general secretary]	-
Political pressure groups and leaders	none	-
Population	82,689,518 (July 2004 est.)	no indigenous inhabitants note: approximately 1,200 former agricultural workers resident in the Chagos Archipelago, often referred to as Chagossians or Ilois, were relocated to Mauritius and the Seychelles in the 1960s and 1970s; in November 2000 they were granted the right of return by a British High Court ruling, though no timetable has been set; in November 2004, there were approximately 4,000 UK and US military personnel and civilian contractors living on the island of Diego Garcia (July 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line	37% (1998 est.)	-
Population growth rate	1.3% (2004 est.)	-
Ports and harbors	Cam Ranh, Da Nang, Haiphong, Ho Chi Minh City, Ha Long, Quy Nhon, Nha Trang, Vinh, Vung Tau	-
Radio broadcast stations	AM 65, FM 7, shortwave 29 (1999)	AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998)
Railways	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	Buddhist, Hoa Hao, Cao Dai, Christian (predominantly Roman Catholic, some Protestant), indigenous beliefs, Muslim	-
Sex ratio	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	-
Telephone system	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)	general assessment: separate facilities for military and public needs are available domestic: all commercial telephone services are available, including connection to the Internet international: international telephone service is carried by satellite (2000)
Telephones - main lines in use	4.402 million (2003)	NA
Telephones - mobile cellular	2.742 million (2003)	-
Television broadcast stations	at least 7 (plus 13 repeaters) (1998)	1 (1997)
Terrain	low, flat delta in south and north; central highlands; hilly, mountainous in far north and northwest	flat and low (most areas do not exceed two meters in elevation)
Total fertility rate	2.22 children born/woman (2004 est.)	-
Unemployment rate	6.1% (2003 est.)	-
Waterways	17,702 km (5,000 km navigable by vessels up to 1.8 m draft) (2004)	-

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