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| 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were withdrawn following a cease-fire agreement in 1973.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.
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|
-GEOGRAPHY |
| Area
|
total
: 329,560 sq km
land : 325,360 sq km
water : 4,200 sq km
|
|
| Land
boundaries |
total
: 4,639 km
border countries :
-
Laos 2,130 km,
-
Cambodia 1,228 km,
-
China 1,281 km
|
| Coastline |
3,444
km (exclude islands)
|
| Climate |
tropical
in south, monsoonal in north with hot, rainy season (May to
September) and warm dry season (October to March)
|
| Terrain |
low,
flat delta in south and north; central hightlands; hilly, mountainous
in far north and northwest
|
| Elevation
extremes |
lowest
point :
South
China Sea 0 m
highest point :
Fan
Si Pan 3,144 m
|
| Natural
resources |
phosphates,
coal, manganese, bauxite, chromatic, offshore oil and gas deposits,
forests, hydropower
|
| Land
use |
arable
land : 20.14%
permanent crops : 6.93%
other : 72,93% (2005)
|
| Irrigated
Land |
30,000
sq km (2003)
|
| Natural
hazards |
occasional
typhoons (May to January) with extensive flooding, especially
in the Mekong River delta
|
| -PEOPLE |
| Population |
85,262,356
(July 2007 est.)
|
| Age
structure |
0-14
years : 26.3% (male 11,617,032 / female 10,784,264)
15-64 years : 67.9% (male 28,711,464 / female 29,205,498)
65 years and over : 5.8% (male 1,919,138 / female 3,024,960)
(2007 est.)
|
| Growth
rate |
1.004%
(2007 est.)
|
| Birth
rate |
16.63
births / 1,000 population (2007 est.)
|
| Death
rate |
6,19
deaths / 1,000 population (2007 est.)
|
| Net
migration rate
|
-0.4
migrant / 1,000 population (2007 est.)
|
Sex
ratio
|
at
birth : 1.07 males / female
under 15 years : 1.077 males / female
15-64 years : 0.983 male / female
65 years and over : 0.634 male / female
total population : 0.982 male / female (2007 est.)
|
| Infant
mortality rate |
total
: 24.37 deaths / 1,000 live births
male : 24.76 deaths / 1,000 live births
female : 23.94 deaths / 1,000 live births (2007 est.)
|
Life
expectancy at birth
|
total
population : 71.07 years
male : 68.27 years
female : 74.08 years (2007 est.)
|
| Total
fertility rate
|
1.89
children born / woman (2007 est.)
|
| HIV
/ AIDS |
adult
prevalence rate : 0.4% (2003 est.)
people
living with HIV / AIDS : 220,000 (2003 est.)
|
| 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)
|
| 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 cencus)
|
| Languages |
Vietnamese
(official), English (increasingly favored as a second language),
some French, Chinese and Khmer. 102 living languages are listed
in Vietnam, including Vietnamese (80% of the speakers), and
one extinct language
|
| Literacy |
definition
: age 15 and over can read and write
total population : 90.3%
male : 93.9%
female : 86.9% (2004 est.)
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