Vietnam (2006) | Tokelau (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 59 provinces (tinh, singular and plural) and 5 municipalities (thanh pho, 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, Ha Nam, Ha Tay, Ha Tinh, Hai Duong, 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 |
none (territory of New Zealand) |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 27% (male 11,826,457/female 10,983,069)
15-64 years: 67.1% (male 28,055,941/female 28,614,553) 65 years and over: 5.8% (male 1,924,562/female 2,998,384) (2006 est.) |
0-14 years:
NA% 15-64 years: NA% 65 years and over: NA% |
Agriculture - products | paddy rice, coffee, rubber, cotton, tea, pepper, soybeans, cashews, sugar cane, peanuts, bananas; poultry; fish, seafood | coconuts, copra, breadfruit, papayas, bananas; pigs, poultry, goats |
Airports | 32 (2006) | none; lagoon landings by amphibious aircraft from Samoa |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 26
over 3,047 m: 8 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 11 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2006) |
- |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 6
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 2 (2006) |
- |
Area | total: 329,560 sq km
land: 325,360 sq km water: 4,200 sq km |
total:
10 sq km land: 10 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than New Mexico | about 17 times the size of The Mall in 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. Vietnam declared independence after World War II, but France continued to rule until its 1954 defeat by Communist forces under Ho Chi MINH. Under the Geneva Accords of 1954, Vietnam was divided into the Communist North and anti-Communist South. 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military aid to South Vietnam grew through the 1960s in an attempt to bolster the government, but US armed forces were withdrawn following a cease-fire agreement in 1973.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 reuniting the country under Communist rule. Despite the return of peace, for over a decade the country experienced little economic growth because of conservative leadership policies. However, since the enactment of Vietnam's "doi moi" (renovation) policy in 1986, Vietnamese authorities have committed to increased 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 various groups - such as the Protestant Montagnard ethnic minority population of the Central Highlands and the Hoa Hao Buddhists in southern Vietnam over religious persecution. Montagnard grievances also include the loss of land to Vietnamese settlers. | Originally settled by Polynesian emigrants from surrounding island groups, the Tokelau Islands were made a British protectorate in 1889. They were transferred to New Zealand administration in 1925. According to a UN report, these low-lying islands will disappear in the 21st century, if global warming continues to raise sea levels. |
Birth rate | 16.86 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | NA births/1,000 population |
Budget | revenues: $11.64 billion
expenditures: $12.95 billion; including capital expenditures of $1.8 billion (2005 est.) |
revenues:
$430,830 expenditures: $2.8 million, including capital expenditures of $37,300 (1987 est.) |
Capital | name: Hanoi
geographic coordinates: 21 02 N, 105 51 E time difference: UTC+7 (12 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
none; each atoll has its own administrative center |
Climate | tropical in south; monsoonal in north with hot, rainy season (May to September) and warm, dry season (October to March) | tropical; moderated by trade winds (April to November) |
Coastline | 3,444 km (excludes islands) | 101 km |
Constitution | 15 April 1992 | administered under the Tokelau Islands Act of 1948, as amended in 1970 |
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:
none conventional short form: Tokelau |
Currency | - | New Zealand dollar (NZD) |
Death rate | 6.22 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | NA deaths/1,000 population |
Debt - external | $20.16 billion (2005 est.) | $0 |
Dependency status | - | territory of New Zealand; note - Tokelauans are drafting a constitution, developing institutions and patterns of self-government as Tokelau moves toward free association with Wellington |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Michael W. MARINE
embassy: 7 Lang Ha Street, 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 (territory of New Zealand) |
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 (territory of New Zealand) |
Disputes - international | 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; after years of Cambodia claiming Vietnam had moved or destroyed boundary markers, in 2005, after much domestic debate, Cambodia ratified an agreement with Vietnam that settled all but a small portion of the land boundary; establishment of a maritime boundary with Cambodia is hampered by unresolved dispute over offshore islands; 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 | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $2.8 billion in credits and grants pledged by international donors for 2000 (2004) | $3.8 million (1995) |
Economy - overview | 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 toward a market-oriented economy. GDP growth averaged 6.8% per year from 1997 to 2004 even against the background of the Asian financial crisis and a global recession, and growth hit 8% in 2005. 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. Vietnam's membership in the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) and entry into force of the US-Vietnam Bilateral Trade Agreement 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 hopes to become a member of the WTO in 2006. Among other benefits, accession would 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. Agriculture's share of economic output has continued to shrink, from about 25% in 2000 to 21% in 2005. Deep poverty, defined as a percent of the population living under $1 per day, has declined significantly and is now smaller than that of China, India, and the Philippines. Vietnam is working to promote job creation to keep up with the country's high population growth rate. However, high levels of inflation have prompted Vietnamese authorities to tighten monetary and fiscal policies. | Tokelau's small size (three villages), isolation, and lack of resources greatly restrain economic development and confine agriculture to the subsistence level. The people must rely on aid from New Zealand to maintain public services, annual aid being substantially greater than GDP. The principal sources of revenue come from sales of copra, postage stamps, souvenir coins, and handicrafts. Money is also remitted to families from relatives in New Zealand. |
Electricity - consumption | 52 billion kWh (2004) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | NA kWh | - |
Electricity - imports | NA kWh | - |
Electricity - production | 46.2 billion kWh (2004) | NA kWh |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
NA% hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Fan Si Pan 3,144 m |
lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location 5 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 | very limited natural resources and overcrowding are contributing to emigration to New Zealand |
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 | 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) | Polynesian |
Exchange rates | dong per US dollar - 15,746 (2005), (2004), 15,510 (2003), 15,280 (2002), 14,725 (2001) | New Zealand dollars per US dollar - 2.2502 (January 2001), 2.1863 (2000), 1.8886 (1999), 1.8632 (1998), 1.5083 (1997), 1.4543 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Nguyen Minh TRIET (since 27 June 2006); Vice President Truong My HOA (since 25 July 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Nguyen Tan DUNG (since 27 June 2006); Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Sinh HUNG (since 28 June 2006), Deputy Prime Minister Pham Gia KHIEM (since 28 June 2006), and Deputy Prime Minister Truong Vinh TRONG (since 28 June 2006) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by president based on proposal of prime minister and confirmed by National Assembly elections: president elected by the National Assembly from among its members for five-year term; election last held 27 June 2006; prime minister appointed by the president from among the members of the National Assembly; deputy prime ministers appointed by the prime minister; appointment of prime minister and deputy prime ministers confirmed by National Assembly election results: Nguyen Minh TRIET elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - 94%; Nguyen Tan DUNG elected prime minister; percent of National Assembly vote - 92% |
chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); the UK and New Zealand are represented by Administrator Lindsay WATT (since NA March 1993) head of government: Aliki Faipule FALIMATEAO (since NA 1997) cabinet: the Council of Faipule, consisting of three elected leaders, one from each atoll; functions as a cabinet elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade in New Zealand; the head of government is chosen from the Council of Faipule and serves a one-year term |
Exports | NA bbl/day | $98,000 (f.o.b., 1983) |
Exports - commodities | crude oil, marine products, rice, coffee, rubber, tea, garments, shoes | stamps, copra, handicrafts |
Exports - partners | US 21.2%, Japan 13.3%, Australia 8.4%, China 7.5%, Singapore 5.3%, Germany 5% (2005) | NZ |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | red with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center | the flag of New Zealand is used |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $1.5 million (1993 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 20.9%
industry: 41% services: 38.1% (2005 est.) |
agriculture:
NA% industry: NA% services: NA% |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $1,000 (1993 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 8.5% (2005 est.) | NA% |
Geographic coordinates | 16 00 N, 106 00 E | 9 00 S, 172 00 W |
Geography - note | extending 1,650 km north to south, the country is only 50 km across at its narrowest point | - |
Highways | - | total:
NA km paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3.6%
highest 10%: 29.9% (1998) |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | minor producer of opium poppy; probable minor transit point for Southeast Asian heroin; government continues to face domestic opium/heroin/methamphetamine addiction problems despite longstanding crackdowns | - |
Imports | NA bbl/day | $323,400 (c.i.f., 1983) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, petroleum products, fertilizer, steel products, raw cotton, grain, cement, motorcycles | foodstuffs, building materials, fuel |
Imports - partners | China 16.3%, Singapore 12.8%, Taiwan 11.7%, Japan 10.4%, South Korea 9.9%, Thailand 6.8% (2005) | NZ |
Independence | 2 September 1945 (from France) | none (territory of New Zealand) |
Industrial production growth rate | 17.2% (2005 est.) | NA% |
Industries | food processing, garments, shoes, machine-building; mining, coal, steel; cement, chemical fertilizer, glass, tires, oil, paper | small-scale enterprises for copra production, woodworking, plaited craft goods; stamps, coins; fishing |
Infant mortality rate | total: 25.14 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 25.54 deaths/1,000 live births female: 24.72 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
NA deaths/1,000 live births |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 8.3% (2005 est.) | NA% |
International organization participation | ACCT (observer), APEC, APT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, EAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer) | SPC, WHO (associate) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 30,000 sq km (2003) | NA 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) | Supreme Court in New Zealand exercises civil and criminal jurisdiction in Tokelau |
Labor force | 44.39 million (2005 est.) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 56.8%
industry: 37% services: 6.2% (July 2005) |
- |
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: 20.14%
permanent crops: 6.93% other: 72.93% (2005) |
arable land:
0% (soil is thin and infertile) permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 0% other: 100% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Vietnamese (official), English (increasingly favored as a second language), some French, Chinese, and Khmer; mountain area languages (Mon-Khmer and Malayo-Polynesian) | Tokelauan (a Polynesian language), English |
Legal system | based on communist legal theory and French civil law system | British and local statutes |
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 |
unicameral General Fono (45 seats - 15 from each of the three atolls; members chosen by each atoll's Council of Elders or Taupulega to serve three-year terms); note - the Tokelau Amendment Act of 1996 confers legislative power on the General Fono |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 70.85 years
male: 68.05 years female: 73.85 years (2006 est.) |
total population:
NA years male: NA years female: NA years |
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 | Oceania, group of three islands in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to New Zealand |
Map references | Southeast Asia | Oceania |
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 |
exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 267 ships (1000 GRT or over) 1,423,936 GRT/2,191,858 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 23, cargo 202, chemical tanker 4, container 5, liquefied gas 5, petroleum tanker 24, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 1, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: 1 (Denmark 1) registered in other countries: 17 (Antigua and Barbuda 1, Honduras 1, Mongolia 8, Panama 4, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1, unknown 2) (2006) |
none (2000 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of New Zealand |
Military branches | People's Armed Forces: People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) (includes People's Navy Command (with naval infantry, coast guard), Air and Air Defense Force (Kon Quan Nhan Dan), Border Defense Command), People's Public Security Forces, Militia Force, Self-Defense Forces (2005) | - |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $650 million (FY98) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 2.5% (FY98) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 2 September (1945) | Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty over New Zealand), 6 February (1840) |
Nationality | noun: Vietnamese (singular and plural)
adjective: Vietnamese |
noun:
Tokelauan(s) adjective: Tokelauan |
Natural hazards | occasional typhoons (May to January) with extensive flooding, especially in the Mekong River delta | lies in Pacific typhoon belt |
Natural resources | phosphates, coal, manganese, bauxite, chromate, offshore oil and gas deposits, forests, hydropower | NEGL |
Net migration rate | -0.42 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | NA migrant(s)/1,000 population |
Pipelines | condensate/gas 432 km; gas 163 km; oil 50 km; refined products 206 km (2006) | - |
Political parties and leaders | only party - Communist Party of Vietnam or CPV [Nong Duc MANH] | none |
Political pressure groups and leaders | none | none |
Population | 84,402,966 (July 2006 est.) | 1,445 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 19.5% (2004 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.02% (2006 est.) | -0.92% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | none; offshore anchorage only |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 65, FM 7, shortwave 29 (1999) | AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA
note: each atoll has a radio broadcast station of unknown type that broadcasts shipping and weather reports (1998) |
Radios | - | 1,000 (1997) |
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 (2005) |
0 km |
Religions | 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) | Congregational Christian Church 70%, Roman Catholic 28%, other 2%
note: on Atafu, all Congregational Christian Church of Samoa; on Nukunonu, all Roman Catholic; on Fakaofo, both denominations, with the Congregational Christian Church predominant |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.07 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 (2006 est.) |
- |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 21 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:
adequate domestic: radiotelephone service between islands international: radiotelephone service to Samoa; government-regulated telephone service (TeleTok), with 3 satellite earth stations, established in 1997 |
Telephones - main lines in use | 15.845 million (2005) | NA |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 9.593 million (2005) | 0 (2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 6 (plus 61 provincial TV stations) (2006) | NA |
Terrain | low, flat delta in south and north; central highlands; hilly, mountainous in far north and northwest | low-lying coral atolls enclosing large lagoons |
Total fertility rate | 1.91 children born/woman (2006 est.) | NA children born/woman |
Unemployment rate | 2.4% (2005 est.) | NA% |
Waterways | 17,702 km (5,000 km navigable by vessels up to 1.8 m draft) (2005) | none |