Imagine a nation where nearly 99 million people, a vibrant blend of 54 ethnic groups with a median age just over 33, are fueling one of the world's fastest-growing economies amidst rapid urbanization and a rich cultural tapestry.
Key Takeaways
- Vietnam's total population as of mid-2023 is estimated at 98,858,950 people, with an annual growth rate of 0.71%
- The median age in Vietnam is 33.4 years as of 2023, with males at 32.5 years and females at 34.3 years
- Vietnam's population density is 307 people per square kilometer as of 2023, ranking 37th globally
- Vietnam's GDP nominal in 2023 is $433.3 billion USD, ranking 35th globally
- GDP per capita in Vietnam reached $4,282 USD in 2023, up from $2,800 in 2020
- Real GDP growth rate was 5.05% in 2023, following 8.02% in 2022
- Vietnam's total land area is 331,210 square kilometers, ranking 65th globally
- Coastline length is 3,444 km, with over 4,000 islands
- Highest point is Fan Si Pan at 3,144 meters in the Hoang Lien Son mountains
- Life expectancy at birth is 75.7 years overall in 2022 (73.7 male, 77.8 female)
- Infant mortality rate is 15.3 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2022
- Maternal mortality ratio is 43 deaths per 100,000 live births as of 2020
- Vietnam is a unitary Marxist-Leninist one-party socialist republic led by the Communist Party since 1975
- National Assembly has 500 members elected for 5-year terms
- President Vo Van Thuong elected in 2023, head of state
Vietnam is a dynamic, youthful nation experiencing rapid urbanization and economic growth.
Demographics
- Vietnam's total population as of mid-2023 is estimated at 98,858,950 people, with an annual growth rate of 0.71%
- The median age in Vietnam is 33.4 years as of 2023, with males at 32.5 years and females at 34.3 years
- Vietnam's population density is 307 people per square kilometer as of 2023, ranking 37th globally
- Approximately 38.4% of Vietnam's population lives in urban areas as of 2023, up from 19% in 1989
- Vietnam has 54 officially recognized ethnic groups, with the Kinh (Viet) comprising 85.7% of the population
- Buddhism is practiced by 14.9% of Vietnamese, while 45.1% identify as unaffiliated or folk religion adherents as of recent surveys
- Vietnamese is the official language spoken by 86% as a first language, with English increasingly used among youth
- Life expectancy at birth in Vietnam is 73.6 years for males and 80.8 years for females as of 2023
- The total fertility rate in Vietnam is 1.96 children per woman as of 2023, below the replacement level of 2.1
- Net migration rate for Vietnam is -0.4 migrants per 1,000 population annually as of 2023
- Vietnam's population pyramid shows a contracting top due to low fertility, with 23.3% under age 15
- Hanoi, the capital, has a population of 8.4 million in its metropolitan area as of 2023
- Ho Chi Minh City, the largest city, has 9.8 million residents as of 2023 estimates
- Vietnam's sex ratio at birth is 1.06 males per female, with overall population sex ratio of 0.98
- About 7.7% of Vietnam's population is over 65 years old as of 2023, indicating rapid aging
- Vietnam ranks 66th in population size globally with 98.8 million people
- The working-age population (15-64) constitutes 68.5% of Vietnam's total population in 2023
- Vietnam's youth unemployment rate among 15-24 year olds was 7.2% in 2022
- Internal migration from rural to urban areas reached 2.5 million people annually in recent years
- Ethnic minorities make up 14.7% of the population, concentrated in highlands
- Female literacy rate in Vietnam is 94.5% for ages 15 and above as of 2022
- Vietnam's population is projected to peak at 105 million by 2040 before declining
- Da Nang city's population grew to 1.25 million by 2023
- Overseas Vietnamese diaspora numbers about 5.3 million as of 2023
- Child population (0-14 years) is 22.7% of total in 2023
- Vietnam's urbanization rate is projected to reach 50% by 2030
- Male life expectancy improved from 68.5 in 2000 to 73.6 in 2023
- Population below poverty line (daily $2.15) dropped to 1.8% by 2022
- Hai Phong metro population is 2.1 million as of 2023
- Vietnam's dependency ratio is 46.1% as of 2023
Demographics Interpretation
Vietnam is a dynamic nation of nearly 99 million, where a youthful, urbanizing population is sprinting toward modernity only to find it's already getting older, slightly outnumbered by women, and living in increasingly cramped quarters while figuring out what comes next.
Economy
- Vietnam's GDP nominal in 2023 is $433.3 billion USD, ranking 35th globally
- GDP per capita in Vietnam reached $4,282 USD in 2023, up from $2,800 in 2020
- Real GDP growth rate was 5.05% in 2023, following 8.02% in 2022
- Agriculture sector contributes 12.46% to GDP in 2022, employing 27.6% of workforce
- Industry sector accounts for 37.54% of GDP in 2022, driven by manufacturing
- Services sector makes up 41.68% of GDP as of 2022
- Exports of goods and services were 93.1% of GDP in 2022, totaling $371 billion
- Major exports include electronics ($114 billion in 2022), textiles, and footwear
- Foreign direct investment inflows reached $17.9 billion in 2022
- Unemployment rate in Vietnam was 1.92% in 2023, one of the lowest in Asia
- Public debt as percentage of GDP is 37.1% as of 2023
- Inflation rate (CPI) averaged 3.25% in 2023
- Vietnam's stock market capitalization is $244 billion as of 2023, with VN-Index at 1,127 points
- Remittances received $18.1 billion in 2022, 4.4% of GDP
- Labor force totals 56.95 million as of 2022
- Manufacturing value added grew 9.5% in 2022, contributing 25% to GDP
- Tourism revenue reached $28 billion in 2023 with 12.6 million international visitors
- Vietnam is the world's second-largest coffee exporter, shipping 1.78 million tons in 2022/23
- Rice production hit 43.5 million tons in 2022, making Vietnam top 3rd globally
- Corporate tax rate is 20%, with incentives for FDI in high-tech sectors
- Ease of doing business rank improved to 70th in 2020 World Bank report
- Foreign exchange reserves stood at $109 billion in 2023
- Household consumption expenditure is 64.5% of GDP in 2022
- Vietnam's credit rating is BB+ from Fitch as of 2023
- Garment exports totaled $44 billion in 2022
- Smartphone exports reached $52.4 billion in 2022, led by Samsung
- Government expenditure is 33.8% of GDP in 2023
Economy Interpretation
Despite its global factory buzz and smartphone swagger, Vietnam's story is a delicate balancing act: a roaring industrial dragon tethered by the plow, sprinting forward on exports while carefully tending a vast, low-income workforce at home.
Geography and Environment
- Vietnam's total land area is 331,210 square kilometers, ranking 65th globally
- Coastline length is 3,444 km, with over 4,000 islands
- Highest point is Fan Si Pan at 3,144 meters in the Hoang Lien Son mountains
- Lowest point is the South China Sea at 0 meters
- Climate is tropical in south, monsoonal in north with average temperature 24°C
- Natural resources include phosphates, coal, manganese, rare earth elements, bauxite
- Arable land constitutes 20.6% of total land area as of 2021
- Forest area covers 41.99% of land, or 138,950 sq km in 2021
- Mekong Delta region comprises 12% of land but produces 50% of rice
- Red River Delta has population density of 1,100 people/sq km
- Annual mean rainfall is 1,500-2,000 mm, highest in central highlands
- Vietnam is vulnerable to typhoons, with 6-10 per year affecting coasts
- Protected areas cover 9.5% of land, including 31 national parks
- Biodiversity includes 12,000 plant species, 1,030 birds, 290 mammals
- Sea level rise threatens 10% of population in Mekong Delta by 2050
- Renewable water resources per capita are 10,056 cubic meters annually
- Air pollution PM2.5 concentration averaged 28.2 micrograms per cubic meter in 2022
- Permanent crops occupy 11.5% of land area in 2021
- Volcanic activity last noted in 1923 at Ile des Cendres
- Major rivers include Mekong (4,220 km shared), Red River (1,149 km)
- Elevation extremes range from 3,144 m to -5 m (delta areas)
- Desert/other covers 0.07% of land, mostly sand dunes
- Annual deforestation rate slowed to 0.13% from 1990-2020
- Coral reefs span 1,100 km along coast
- Central Highlands average elevation 500-1,500 m, coffee production hub
- Typhoon season peaks September-November, causing $1.5B damage yearly avg
- Carbon dioxide emissions totaled 286.7 million metric tons in 2021
- Mangrove forests cover 200,000 hectares, vital for coastal protection
- Vietnam lies on Pacific Ring of Fire, moderate earthquake risk
- Freshwater withdrawal is 75.4 billion cubic meters annually, 96% for agriculture
Geography and Environment Interpretation
Vietnam's geography is a study in precarious abundance: it is a nation whose soaring highlands cradle rare earths while its drowning deltas feed half the country, all while bracing against an annual siege of typhoons and the slow creep of the sea.
Government and Infrastructure
- Vietnam is a unitary Marxist-Leninist one-party socialist republic led by the Communist Party since 1975
- National Assembly has 500 members elected for 5-year terms
- President Vo Van Thuong elected in 2023, head of state
- Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh appointed in 2021, head of government
- Constitution adopted in 2013, effective 1 January 2014
- Suffrage age is 18 years, universal
- Administrative divisions include 58 provinces and 5 municipalities
- Active military personnel number 482,000, with 5 million reserves
- Defense budget is 2.3% of GDP in 2023, about $8 billion
- Paved roadways total 130,467 km as of 2021
- Airports number 45 with paved runways over 3,000m: 11 as of 2023
- Internet users are 78.5 million, 79.1% penetration in 2023
- Mobile cellular subscriptions are 158 per 100 people in 2022
- Fixed broadband subscriptions are 21.7 per 100 in 2022
- Railways total 2,600 km, mostly single track meter gauge
- Merchant marine fleet has 1,873 ships totaling 8.98 million DWT as of 2022
- Electricity production is 282 billion kWh annually, access 99.4% in 2022
- Hanoi metro system (Cat Linh–Ha Dong line) opened 2021, 13 km
- Corruption Perceptions Index score is 42/100 in 2022, ranking 77th
- Human Freedom Index rank is 117th with score 5.57 in 2022
- Press Freedom Index rank 178th out of 180 in 2023
- Women in parliament constitute 30.3% as of 2023
- HDI value is 0.726 (high), ranking 115th in 2022
- Rule of Law Index score 0.44, ranking 73rd in 2023
- Ports handle 692 million tons cargo annually, Cai Mep-Thi Vai largest
- 5G coverage launched in major cities in 2022, subscribers growing
- Judicial review by Supreme People's Court, no constitutional court
Government and Infrastructure Interpretation
One might charitably describe Vietnam's system as a single-party democracy with impressive infrastructure and digital growth, which nevertheless operates with the firm ideological hand and media control of its long-ruling Communist Party, leaving its high human development in a curious tension with its notably low rankings for press and political freedoms.
Health and Social Services
- Life expectancy at birth is 75.7 years overall in 2022 (73.7 male, 77.8 female)
- Infant mortality rate is 15.3 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2022
- Maternal mortality ratio is 43 deaths per 100,000 live births as of 2020
- HIV/AIDS prevalence among adults 15-49 is 0.2% in 2022
- Physicians density is 0.9 per 1,000 people in 2020
- Hospital beds per 1,000 people is 2.6 as of 2020
- Adult literacy rate is 95.8% (95.0% male, 96.5% female) ages 15+ in 2022
- Primary school enrollment net rate is 98.7% for relevant age group in 2021
- Secondary school enrollment gross rate is 89.4% in 2021
- Tertiary enrollment gross rate reached 30.2% in 2021
- Immunization coverage for DTP3 among 1-year-olds is 95% in 2022
- Obesity rate among adults is 2.1% in 2016 (latest)
- Diabetes prevalence among adults 20-79 is 6.1% in 2021
- Tuberculosis incidence is 105 per 100,000 people in 2022
- Government health expenditure is 5.3% of GDP in 2021
- Access to improved drinking water is 98% of population in 2022
- Suicide mortality rate is 7.9 per 100,000 in 2019
- Malnutrition prevalence (weight for age) in children under 5 is 13.6% in 2020
- Female labor force participation is 71.5% ages 15+ in 2022
- Youth literacy rate (15-24) is 98.1% in 2022
- PISA math score average is 461 in 2018, above OECD average
- Government education expenditure is 4.2% of GDP in 2021
- Contraceptive prevalence is 71% among women 15-49 in 2021
- Access to improved sanitation is 89% of population in 2022
- Mean years of schooling is 8.6 for adults 25+ in 2021
- Gender parity index in primary education is 0.99 in 2021
- Hepatitis B prevalence reduced to 1% among children under 5 in 2019
- Expected years of schooling is 12.9 years in 2022
- Under-5 mortality rate is 18.5 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2022
- Road traffic death rate is 26.4 per 100,000 in 2019
Health and Social Services Interpretation
Vietnam's portrait is one of paradox: its people are living longer and learning more while its roads are perilous and its hospital beds are scarce, proving that national health is a complex equation where educational gains don't always subtract infrastructural pains.
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