$NA
Exchange rates:
dong (VND) per US dollar - 16,548.3 (2008 est.), 16,119 (2007), 15,983 (2006), 15,746 (2005), NA (2004)
Communications ::Vietnam
Telephones - main lines in use:
29.591 million (2008) country comparison to the world: 11
Telephones - mobile cellular:
70 million (2008) country comparison to the world: 13
Telephone system:
general assessment: Vietnam is putting considerable effort into modernization and expansion of its telecommunication system
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; a landing point for the SEA-ME-WE-3, the C2C, and Thailand-Vietnam-Hong Kong submarine cable systems; the Asia-America Gateway submarine cable system, scheduled for completion by the end of 2008, will provide new access links to Asia and the US; satellite earth stations - 2 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 65, FM 7, shortwave 29 (1999)
Television broadcast stations:
67 (includes 61 relay, provincial, and city TV stations) (2006)
Internet country code:
.vn
Internet hosts:
170,689 (2009) country comparison to the world: 66
Internet users:
20.834 million (2008) country comparison to the world: 18
Transportation ::Vietnam
Airports:
44 (2009) country comparison to the world: 97
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 37
over 3,047 m: 9
2,438 to 3,047 m: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 14
914 to 1,523 m: 9 (2009)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 7
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 3
under 914 m: 3 (2009)
Heliports:
1 (2009)
Pipelines:
condensate/gas 42 km; gas 66 km; refined products 206 km (2008)
Railways:
total: 2,347 km country comparison to the world: 66 standard gauge: 178 km 1.435-m gauge
narrow gauge: 2,169 km 1.000-m gauge (2008)
Roadways:
total: 222,179 km country comparison to the world: 23 paved: 42,167 km
unpaved: 180,012 km (2004)
Waterways:
17,702 km (5,000 km navigable by vessels up to 1.8 m draft) (2008) country comparison to the world: 7
Merchant marine:
total: 387 country comparison to the world: 28 by type: barge carrier 1, bulk carrier 36, cargo 280, chemical tanker 12, container 14, liquefied gas 6, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 32, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 1, specialized tanker 1
foreign-owned: 2 (Hong Kong 1, Japan 1)
registered in other countries: 64 (Honduras 1, Liberia 4, Mongolia 23, Panama 30, Tuvalu 5, unknown 1) (2008)
Ports and terminals:
Da Nang, Hai Phong, Ho Chi Minh City
Transportation - note:
the International Maritime Bureau reports the territorial and offshore waters in the South China Sea as high risk for piracy and armed robbery against ships; numerous commercial vessels have been attacked and hijacked both at anchor and while underway; hijacked vessels are often disguised and cargo diverted to ports in East Asia; crews have been murdered or cast adrift
Military ::Vietnam
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 service age and obligation:
18 years of age (male) for compulsory military service; females may volunteer for active duty military service; conscript service obligation - 2 years (3 to 4 years in the navy); 18-45 years of age (male) or 18-40 years of age (female) for Militia Force or Self Defense Forces (2006)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 16-49: 24,586,328
females age 16-49: 24,335,132 (2008 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 16-49: 19,190,676
females age 16-49: 20,768,508 (2009 est.)
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually:
male: 893,726
female: 834,279 (2009 est.)
Military expenditures:
2.5% of GDP (2005 est.) country comparison to the world: 68
Transnational Issues ::Vietnam
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; an estimated 300,000 Vietnamese refugees reside in China; establishment of a maritime boundary with Cambodia is hampered by unresolved dispute over the sovereignty of offshore islands; 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 the 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
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
page last updated on November 11, 2009
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@Virgin Islands (Central America and Caribbean)
Introduction ::Virgin Islands
Background:
During the 17th century, the archipelago was divided into two territorial units, one English and the other Danish. Sugarcane, produced by slave labor, drove the islands' economy during the 18th and early 19th centuries. In 1917, the US purchased the Danish portion, which had been in economic decline since the abolition of slavery in 1848.
Geography ::Virgin Islands
Location:
Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic
Ocean, east of Puerto Rico
Geographic coordinates:
18 20 N, 64 50 W
Map references:
Central America and the Caribbean
Area:
total: 1,910 sq km country comparison to the world: 181 land: 346 sq km
water: 1,564 sq km
Area - comparative:
twice the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries:
0 km
Coastline:
188 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Climate:
subtropical, tempered by easterly trade winds, relatively low humidity, little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season September to November
Terrain:
mostly hilly to rugged and mountainous with little level land
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Crown Mountain 475 m
Natural resources:
sun, sand, sea, surf
Land use:
arable land: 5.71%
permanent crops: 2.86%
other: 91.43% (2005)
Irrigated land:
NA
Natural hazards:
several hurricanes in recent years; frequent and severe droughts and floods; occasional earthquakes
Environment - current issues:
lack of natural freshwater resources
Geography - note:
important location along the Anegada Passage - a key shipping lane for the Panama Canal; Saint Thomas has one of the best natural deepwater harbors in the Caribbean
People ::Virgin Islands
Population:
109,825 (July 2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 190
Age structure:
0-14 years: 20.4% (male 11,394/female 11,048)
15-64 years: 65.9% (male 33,843/female 38,574)
65 years and over: 13.6% (male 6,747/female 8,219) (2009 est.)
Median age:
total: 39.1 years
male: 38.6 years
female: 39.6 years (2009 est.)
Population growth rate:
-0.029% (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 205
Birth rate:
11.95 births/1,000 population (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 169
Death rate:
6.75 deaths/1,000 population (July 2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 144
Net migration rate:
-5.49 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 165
Urbanization:
urban population: 95% of total population (2008)
rate of urbanization: 0.2% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.88 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.82 male(s)/female
total population: 0.9 male(s)/female (2009 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 7.56 deaths/1,000 live births country comparison to the world: 165 male: 8.28 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 6.79 deaths/1,000 live births (2009 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 79.05 years country comparison to the world: 35 male: 76.02 years
female: 82.26 years (2009 est.)
Total fertility rate:
1.85 children born/woman (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 151
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
NA
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
NA
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
NA
Nationality:
noun: Virgin Islander(s) (US citizens)
adjective: Virgin Islander
Ethnic groups:
black 76.2%, white 13.1%, Asian 1.1%, other 6.1%, mixed 3.5% (2000 census)
Religions:
Baptist 42%, Roman Catholic 34%, Episcopalian 17%, other 7%
Languages:
English 74.7%, Spanish or Spanish Creole 16.8%, French or French
Creole 6.6%, other 1.9% (2000 census)
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 90-95% est.
male: NA
female: NA (2005 est.)
Education expenditures:
NA
Government ::Virgin Islands
Country name:
conventional long form: United States Virgin Islands
conventional short form: Virgin Islands
former: Danish West Indies
abbreviation: USVI
Dependency status:
organized, unincorporated territory of the US with policy relations between the Virgin Islands and the US under the jurisdiction of the Office of Insular Affairs, US Department of the Interior
Government type:
NA
Capital:
name: Charlotte Amalie
geographic coordinates: 18 21 N, 64 56 W
time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Administrative divisions:
none (territory of the US); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are three islands at the second order; Saint Croix, Saint John, Saint Thomas
Independence:
none (territory of the US)
National holiday:
Transfer Day (from Denmark to the US), 31 March (1917)
Constitution:
Revised Organic Act of 22 July 1954
Legal system:
based on US laws
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal; island residents are US citizens but do not vote in US presidential elections
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Barack H. OBAMA (since 20 January 2009); Vice President Joseph R. BIDEN (since 20 January 2009)
head of government: Governor John DeJONGH (since 1 January 2007)
cabinet: NA
elections: under the US Constitution, residents of unincorporated territories, such as the Virgin Islands, do not vote in elections for US president and vice president; however, they may vote in the Democratic and Republican presidential primary elections; governor and lieutenant governor elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms (eligible for a second term); election last held 7 and 21 November 2006 (next to be held November 2010)
election results: John DeJONGH elected governor; percent of vote - John DeJONGH 57.3%, Kenneth MAPP 42.7%
Legislative branch:
unicameral Senate (15 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve two-year terms)
elections: last held 4 November 2008 (next to be held in November 2010)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Democratic Party 10, ICM 2, independent 3
note: the Virgin Islands elects one non-voting representative to the US House of Representatives; election last held 4 November 2008 (next to be held in November 2010)
Judicial branch:
US District Court of the Virgin Islands (under Third Circuit jurisdiction); Superior Court of the Virgin Islands (judges appointed by the governor for 10-year terms)
Political parties and leaders:
Democratic Party [Arturo WATLINGTON]; Independent Citizens' Movement or ICM [Usie RICHARDS]; Republican Party [Gary SPRAUVE]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
NA
International organization participation:
IOC, UPU, WFTU
Diplomatic representation in the US:
none (territory of the US)
Diplomatic representation from the US:
none (territory of the US)
Flag description:
white field with a modified US coat of arms in the center between the large blue initials V and I; the coat of arms shows a yellow eagle holding an olive branch in one talon and three arrows in the other with a superimposed shield of vertical red and white stripes below a blue panel
Economy ::Virgin Islands
Economy - overview:
Tourism is the primary economic activity, accounting for 80% of GDP and employment. The islands hosted 2.6 million visitors in 2005. The manufacturing sector consists of petroleum refining, rum distilling, textiles, electronics, pharmaceuticals, and watch assembly. One of the world's largest petroleum refineries is at Saint Croix. The agricultural sector is small, with most food being imported. International business and financial services are small but growing components of the economy. The islands are vulnerable to substantial damage from storms. The government is working to improve fiscal discipline, to support construction projects in the private sector, to expand tourist facilities, to reduce crime, and to protect the environment.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$1.577 billion (2004 est.) country comparison to the world: 191
GDP (official exchange rate):