With an estimated 94.6 million inhabitants as of 2016, Vietnam is the 15th most populous country in the world. Vietnam shares its land borders with China to the north, and Laos and Cambodia to the west. It shares its maritime borders with Thailand through the Gulf of Thailand, and the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia through the South China Sea. Its capital city is Hanoi, while its most populous city is Ho Chi Minh City.
The topography consists mainly of hills and densely-forested mountains, which explains the demographic distribution of the nation: the majority ethnic Vietnamese, the Kinh, who make up 85.8% of the population are largely concentrated in the deltas and the lowlands whilst the ethnic minorities (around 54 groups) are dispersed in the highlands and mountains, which comprise 14% of the population and are proportionately affected by poverty, representing almost 30% of the poor.
Vietnam has long been devastated by wars, the consequences of which have been conspicuously seen in all spheres of life. Poverty and disease ravaged the country in the post-1975 years. However, thanks to the world’s intervention that poured aid into medical, training and infrastructure programs coupled with government led broad economic reforms that facilitated Vietnamese integration into world politics and the global economy. As a result, Vietnam has enjoyed a high GDP growth rate, consistently ranked among the fastest-growing countries in the world, although it still faces poverty, corruption and inadequate social welfare. Economic reforms have also caused a rise in income inequality and gender disparities. Many households have barely risen above the poverty line and therefore remain vulnerable. Currently 10.8% of households in Ha Giang, Lai Chau, Cao Bang are classified as food poor according to the international food poverty line.
Whilst the country’s performance in terms of human development is relatively favourable there are nevertheless serious problems in healthcare. Many birth defects in war-ravaged areas are caused directly by exposure to the chemical and 24% of the forested area of Vietnam being defoliated. Malnutrition is still common in the Northern uplands and remote rural villages due to the poor access to economic and welfare development. In the late 1980s, the quality of healthcare declined to some degree as a result of budgetary constraints, which also contributed to a shortage of nurses, midwives and hospital beds. The country also faces a number of re-emerging and new diseases such as pollution-related diseases and HIV/AIDS.
Vietnam has an extensive state-controlled network of schools, colleges and universities and a growing number of privately run and partially privatised institutions. General education in Vietnam is divided into five categories: kindergarten, elementary schools, middle schools, high schools, and universities. Basic education in the country is relatively free for the poor although some families may still have trouble paying tuition fees for their children without some form of public or private assistance.
Note: The data above were taken from Wikipedia Vietnam (2009-2018)