HOAN (since NA) and Pham Gia KHIEM (since 29 September 1997)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the proposal of the prime
minister and ratification of the National Assembly election results:
Tran Duc LUONG elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - NA%

Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly or Quoc-Hoi (498 seats;
members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) elections:
last held 19 May 2002 (next to be held 2007) 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

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, APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN,
CCC, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO,
IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer)

Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Nguyen
Tam CHIEN consulate(s) general: San
[1] (202) 861-0737 chancery:
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador
Raymond F. BURGHARDT 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 the government's belief that shifting to a market oriented
economy leads to disaster. GDP growth of 8.5% in 1997 fell to 6% in 1998
and 5% in 1999. Growth then r