|
Capital city: |
Hanoi |
|
Population: |
85.5 million (2006) |
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Population density: |
257.8 inhabitants/km2 |
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Area: |
331,690 km2 |
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Annual income per person per
year: |
€620 |
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Climate: |
Tropical in south, monsoonal in
north |
|
Land |
Agriculture:
28.4 %
Forest: 35.2 %
Urban
areas, industries and other: 4.7 %
Scrub
and grassland: 23 % |
Geography
Vietnam’s shape is long and narrow with a 1,400 km
long coastline. It can be divided into three major regions:The north: The far
north is mountainous, with the western Hoãng
Lûn Sõn
mountains reaching heights above 3,000 m, the highest point being Phan Si Pan
mountain. The delta of the Red River is very flat and is one of Vietnam’s main
rice production areas. The Vietnamese capital Hanoi is located in the heart of the Red
River Delta.
The center: The
mountains of the approximately 1,000 km long middle part of Vietnam extend
to the seacoast where they fall steeply into the sea. The highest point is the
Ngoc Linh at 2,598 m above sea level. More to the south the mountains descend into
the high plateau of the Central Highland. The highlands are mostly fertile
areas suitable for production of coffee, vegetables, etc. The narrow low-lying
area along the coast is less suitable for agriculture; fishing and aquaculture
dominates here.
The south: A large
part of the south is covered by the Mekong Delta. The region is flat and
without any important mountains. The Mekong Delta is the country’s main rice
production area. Ho-Chi-Minh-City,
Vietnam largest
and busiest city lies just north of the Mekong Delta.
Climate
Vietnam has a tropical monsoon climate with high
temperatures and humidity. During the year there is a shift from humid heat and
heavy rainfalls from May to September to a cold, dry climate from November to
March. Because of large geographic differences, climate characteristics vary
locally.
Economy
Land reform and
de-collectivization converted Vietnamfrom a country facing chronic food shortages in the early 1980s to the
second-largest rice exporter in the world. Besides rice, key exports are
coffee, tea, rubber, and fisheries products. Agriculture's share of economic
output has declined, falling as a share of GDP from 42 % in 1989 to 20.4 % in
2006, as production in other sectors of the economy has risen. Paralleling its
efforts to increase agricultural output, Vietnam’s industrial production has
grown. Industry contributed 41.5 % of GDP in 2006, up from 27.3 % in 1985.
Vietnam achieved around 8 % annual GDP growth from
1990 to 1997 and continued at around 7 % from 2000 to 2005, making it the
world's second-fastest growing economy. Simultaneously, foreign investment grew
threefold and domestic savings quintupled. Manufacturing, information
technology and high-tech industries form a large and fast-growing part of the
national economy.
Environment
Vietnam is very rich in natural resources. Because it
has a wide range of habitats (equatorial lowlands to high, temperate plateaus
and even alpine peaks) its wild fauna and flora is enormously diverse.
However, Vietnam is one
of the most natural disaster-prone countries and is today increasingly
threatened by environmental problems caused by the high speed of economic development.
For example,
increasing water demands for a growing number of irrigated areas have resulted
in falling water tables. Water quality is threatened by the fast development of
industries and by urbanization. Also the increase of fisheries and aquaculture
damages the water quality.
Marine biodiversity is
also threatened by dam and road construction, dredging, overfishing and
intensive aquaculture.
The aftermath of the
war is still apparent in Vietnam.
The effects of Agent Orange are obvious in large areas of the country,
especially in the mangrove swampland, where the forest is irrecoverably destroyed.
Forests on hillsides cannot be reforested, so erosion is typical in these
areas.
The Vietnamese
government is today increasingly concerned with the challenge to preserve a
healthy environment as the basis for sustainable development of the country.
Further information Web site of the Government of Vietnam
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