Country name
conventional long form: Socialist Republic of Vietnam
conventional short form: Vietnam
local short form: Viet Nam
abbreviation: SRV
local long form: Cong Hoa Xa Hoi Chu Nghia Viet Nam

Government type Communist state

Capital Hanoi

Administrative divisions 58 provinces (tinh, singular and plural), and 3 municipalities* (thu do, singular and plural); An Giang, Bac Giang, Bac Kan, Bac Lieu, Bac Ninh, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Ben Tre, Binh Dinh, Binh Duong, Binh Phuoc, Binh Thuan, Ca Mau, Can Tho, Cao Bang, Dac Lak, Da Nang, Dong Nai, Dong Thap, Gia Lai, Ha Giang, Hai Duong, Hai Phong*, Ha Nam, Ha Noi*, Ha Tay, Ha Tinh, Hoa Binh, Ho Chi Minh*, Hung Yen, Khanh Hoa, Kien Giang, Kon Tum, Lai Chau, Lam Dong, Lang Son, Lao Cai, Long An, Nam Dinh, Nghe An, Ninh Binh, Ninh Thuan, Phu Tho, Phu Yen, Quang Binh, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai, Quang Ninh, Quang Tri, Soc Trang, Son La, Tay Ninh, Thai Binh, Thai Nguyen, Thanh Hoa, Thua Thien-Hue, Tien Giang, Tra Vinh, Tuyen Quang, Vinh Long, Vinh Phuc, Yen Bai

Independence 2 September 1945 (from France)

National holiday Independence Day, 2 September (1945)

Constitution 15 April 1992

Legal system based on communist legal theory and French civil law system

Suffrage 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
chief of state: President Tran Duc LUONG (since 24 September 1997)
elections: president elected by the National Assembly from among its members for a five-year term; election last held 24 September 1997 (next to be held when National Assembly meets following legislative elections in May 2002); prime minister appointed by the president from among the members of the National Assembly; deputy prime ministers appointed by the prime minister
head of government: Prime Minister Phan Van KHAI (since 25 September 1997); First Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Tan DUNG (since 29 September 1997); Deputy Prime Ministers Vu KHOAN (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 Francisco
FAX: [1] (202) 861-0917
telephone: [1] (202) 861-0737
chancery: 1233 20th Street NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC 20036

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

NOTE: The information regarding Vietnam on this page is re-published from the 2002 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Vietnam Government 2002 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Vietnam Government 2002 should be addressed to the CIA.