billion in credits and grants pledged by international
donors for 1996

Currency: 1 new dong (D) = 100 xu

Exchange rates: new dong (D) per US$1 - 11,193 (1995 average),
11,000 (October 1994), 10,800 (November 1993), 8,100 (July 1991),
7,280 (December 1990), 3,996 (March 1990)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Transportation
--------------

Railways:
total: 2,835 km (in addition, there are 224 km not restored to
service after war damage)
standard gauge: 151 km 1.435-m gauge
narrow gauge: 2,454 km 1.000-m gauge
other gauge: 230 km NA-m dual gauge (three rails)

Highways:
total: 105,000 km
paved: 10,500 km
unpaved: 94,500 km (1993 est.)

Waterways: 17,702 km navigable; more than 5,149 km navigable at
all times by vessels up to 1.8 m draft

Pipelines: petroleum products 150 km

Ports: Da Nang, Haiphong, Ho Chi Minh City, Hon Gai, Qui Nhon, Nha
Trang

Merchant marine:
total: 112 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 569,269 GRT/947,938 DWT
ships by type: bulk 3, cargo 95, oil tanker 10, refrigerated cargo
3, roll-on/roll-off cargo 1
note: Vietnam owns an additional 9 ships (1,000 GRT or over)
totaling 120,320 DWT operating under the registries of Honduras,
Panama, The Bahamas, and Malta (1995 est.)

Airports:
total: 48
with paved runways over 3 047 m: 8
with paved runways 2 438 to 3 047 m: 3
with paved runways 1 524 to 2 437 m: 5
with paved runways 914 to 1 523 m: 13
with paved runways under 914 m: 7
with unpaved runways 1 524 to 2 437 m: 2
with unpaved runways 914 to 1 523 m: 5
with unpaved runways under 914 m: 5 (1994 est.)

Communications
--------------

Telephones: 800,000 (1995 est.)

Telephone system: while Vietnam's telecommunication sector lags
far behind other countries in Southeast Asia, Hanoi has made
considerable progress since 1991 in upgrading the system; Vietnam
has digitized fully 100% of provincial switch boards, while
fiber-optic and microwave transmission systems have been extended
from Hanoi, Da Nang, and Ho Chi Minh City to all provinces; the
density of telephone receivers nationwide doubled from 1993 to 1995,
but is still far behind other countries in the region; Vietnam's
telecommunications strategy aims to increase telephone density to 30
per 1,000 inhabitants by the year 2000 and authorities estimate that
approximately $2.7 billion will be spent on telecommunications
upgrades through th