Vietnam

Country Summary

2022 population pyramid

Introduction

Background

The conquest of Vietnam by France began in 1858 and was completed by 1884. It became part of French Indochina in 1887. France continued to rule until its 1954 defeat, when the country was divided into North and South halves. Communist North Vietnam eventually conquered the anti-communist South in 1975 but then stagnated economically until 1986 before introducing a more market-based economy.

Geography

Area

total: 331,210 sq km

land: 310,070 sq km

water: 21,140 sq km

Climate

tropical in south; monsoonal in north with hot, rainy season (May to September) and warm, dry season (October to March)

Natural resources

antimony, phosphates, coal, manganese, rare earth elements, bauxite, chromate, offshore oil and gas deposits, timber, hydropower, arable land

People and Society

Population

103,808,319 (2022 est.)

Ethnic groups

Kinh (Viet) 85.3%, Tay 1.9%, Thai 1.9%, Muong 1.5%, Khmer 1.4%, Mong 1.4%, Nung 1.1%, other 5.5% (2019 est.)

Languages

Vietnamese (official), English (increasingly favored as a second language), some French, Chinese, and Khmer, mountain area languages (Mon-Khmer and Malayo-Polynesian)

Religions

Catholic 6.1%, Buddhist 5.8%, Protestant 1%, other 0.8%, none 86.3% (2019 est.)

Population growth rate

0.97% (2022 est.)

Government

Government type

communist state

Capital

name: Hanoi (Ha Noi)

Executive branch

chief of state: President Nguyen Xuan PHUC (since 26 July 2021)

head of government: Prime Minister Pham Minh CHINH (since 26 July 2021)

Legislative branch

description: unicameral National Assembly or Quoc Hoi  (500 seats - number following 2021 election - 499; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by absolute majority vote; members serve 5-year terms)

Economy

Economic overview

lower middle-income socialist East Asian economy; rapid economic growth since Đổi Mới reforms; strong investment and productivity growth; tourism and manufacturing hub; TPP signatory; declining poverty aside from ethnic minorities; systemic corruption

Real GDP (purchasing power parity)

$798.21 billion (2020 est.)

Real GDP per capita

$8,200 (2020 est.)

Agricultural products

rice, vegetables, sugar cane, cassava, maize, pork, fruit, bananas, coffee, coconuts

Industries

food processing, garments, shoes, machine-building; mining, coal, steel; cement, chemical fertilizer, glass, tires, oil, mobile phones

Exports

$280.83 billion (2019 est.)

Exports - partners

United States 23%, China 14%, Japan 8%, South Korea 7% (2019)

Exports - commodities

broadcasting equipment, telephones, integrated circuits, footwear, furniture (2019)

Imports

$261.68 billion (2019 est.)

Imports - partners

China 35%, South Korea 18%, Japan 6% (2019)

Imports - commodities

integrated circuits, telephones, refined petroleum, textiles, semiconductors (2019)

Exchange rates

dong (VND) per US dollar -


Page last updated: Thursday, June 23, 2022