25 July 2002 (next
to be held when National Assembly meets following legislative
elections in 2007); prime minister appointed by the president from
among the members of the National Assembly; deputy prime ministers
appointed by the prime minister

Legislative branch:
unicameral National Assembly or Quoc-Hoi (498 seats; members
elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
election results: percent of vote by party - CPV 90%, other 10% (the
10% are not CPV members but are approved by the CPV to stand for
election); seats by party - CPV 447, CPV-approved 51
elections: last held 19 May 2002 (next to be held 2007)

Judicial branch:
Supreme People's Court (chief justice is elected for a five-year
term by the National Assembly on the recommendation of the president)

Political parties and leaders:
only party - Communist Party of Vietnam or CPV [Nong Duc Manh,
general secretary]

Political pressure groups and leaders:
none

International organization participation:
ACCT (observer), APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD,
ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM
(observer), ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO,
UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer)

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Nguyen Tam Chien
chancery: 1233 20th Street NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC 20036
consulate(s) general: San Francisco
FAX: [1] (202) 861-0917
telephone: [1] (202) 861-0737

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Michael W. MARINE
embassy: 7 Lang Ha Road, Ba Dinh District, Hanoi
mailing address: PSC 461, Box 400, FPO AP 96521-0002
telephone: [84] (4) 772-1500
FAX: [84] (4) 772-1510
consulate(s) general: Ho Chi Minh City

Flag description:
red with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center

Economy Vietnam

Economy - overview:
Vietnam is a poor, densely-populated country that has had to
recover from the ravages of war, the loss of financial support from
the old Soviet Bloc, and the rigidities of a centrally-planned
economy. Substantial progress was achieved from 1986 to 1996 in
moving forward from an extremely low starting point - growth
averaged around 9% per year from 1993 to 1997. The 1997 Asian
financial crisis highlighted the problems in the Vietnamese economy,
but rather than prompting reform, reaffirmed