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Country name:
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Vietnam
Conventional long form: Socialist Republic of Vietnam
Conventional short form: Vietnam
Local short form: Viet Nam
Abbreviation: SRV
local long form: Cong Hoa Xa Hoi Chu Nghia Viet Nam
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Government type:
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Communist state
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Capital:
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Hanoi
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Administrative divisions:
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58 provinces (tinh, singular and plural), and 3 municipalities* (thu do, singular and plural); 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, Can Tho, Cao Bang, Dac Lak, Da Nang, Dong Nai, Dong Thap, Gia Lai, Ha Giang, Hai Duong, Hai Phong*, Ha Nam, Ha Noi*, Ha Tay, Ha Tinh, Hoa Binh, Ho Chi Minh*, 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
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Independence:
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2 September 1945 (from France)
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National holiday:
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Independence Day, 2 September (1945)
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Constitution:
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15 April 1992
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Population:
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81,098,416 (July 2002 est.)
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Age structure:
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0-14 years: 31.6% (male 13,259,152; female 12,392,089)
15-64 years: 62.9% (male 24,938,098; female 26,083,681)
65 years and over: 5.5% (male 1,749,531; female 2,675,865) (2002 est.)
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Location:
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Southeastern Asia, bordering the Gulf of Thailand, Gulf of Tonkin, and South China Sea, alongside China, Laos, and Cambodia
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Geographic coordinates:
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16 00 N, 106 00 E
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Area:
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Total: 329,560 sq km
Land: 325,360 sq km
Water: 4,200 sq km
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Area - comparative:
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Slightly larger than New Mexico
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Land boundaries:
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Total: 4,639 km
Border countries: Cambodia 1,228 km, China 1,281 km, Laos 2,130 km
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Coastline:
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3,444 km (excludes islands)
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Climate:
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Tropical in south; monsoonal in
north with hot, rainy season (mid-May to mid-September) and
warm, dry season (mid-October to mid-March)
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Terrain:
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Low, flat delta in south and north;
central highlands; hilly, mountainous in far north and northwest
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Elevation extremes:
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Lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
Highest point: Fan Si Pan 3,144 m
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Natural resources:
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Phosphates, Coal, Manganese,
Bauxite, Chromate, Offshore oil and gas deposits, Forests,
Hydropower
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Land use:
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Arable land: 17.41%
Permanent crops: 4.71%
Other: 77.88% (1998 est.)
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Irrigated land:
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30,000 sq km (1998 est.)
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Natural hazards:
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Occasional typhoons (May to January)
with extensive flooding, especially in the Mekong River delta
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Environment - current issues:
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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
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Environment - international agreements:
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Party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
Signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Nuclear Test Ban
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Geography - note:
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Extending 1,650 km north to south,
the country is only 50 km across at its narrowest point
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