Main Page | See live article | Alphabetical index

Provinces of Vietnam

The country of Vietnam is divided into sixty provinces (known in Vietnamese as tỉnh). There are also five municipalities (thủ đô) existing at the same level as provinces.

Government

Vietnamese provinces are, at least in theory, controlled by a People’s Council, elected by the inhabitants. The People's Council appoints a People's Committee, which acts as the executive arm of the provincial government. This arrangement is a somewhat simplified version of the situation in Vietnam's national government. Provincial governments are expected to be subordinate to the central government.

People's Council

Each People's Council has a Standing Committee made up of the Chairperson and his/her deputies, who are elected from among the representatives in the People's Council. The Standing Committee has a number of functions, including representing the People's Council when it is not in session. There are also a number of other committees established to deal with specific issues. All provinces have an Economic and Budgetary Committee, a Social and Cultural Committee, and a Legal Committee. If a province has many inhabitants who are not ethnically Vietnamese, there will probably be a Committee for Ethnic Affairs as well.

Citizens are eligible to vote in People's Council elections from when they are aged eighteen, but cannot stand for election until they are aged twenty-one. To become a candidate, one can either nominate oneself or be selected by the Fatherland Front. Nominated candidates are then voted on at "voters' conferences", which are organized by the Fatherland Front. Attendees determine, sometimes by secret balot and sometimes by a show of hands, whether candidates meet the criteria set down by the People's Council. Candidates who the conference does not "express trust" in cannot stand for election.

The number of candidates elected per voting district is between one and three. There must be more candidates standing in each district than there are seats to be filled.

People's Committee

The People's Committee is, as mentioned previously, the executive arm of a provincial government, and is responsible for formulating and implementing policy. It may be thought of as the equivalent of a cabinet. The People's Committee will have a President and a Vice-President, and between nine or eleven ordinary members.

List and statistics

The most populous top-level administrative unit in Vietnam is Ho Chi Minh City, one of the five municipalities. It has over five million people living within its official boundaries. The second most populous administrative unit, and the most populous province, is Thanh Hoa, with over three and a half million people. The least populous is Lai Chau, a mountainous province in the remote north-west.

In terms of land area, the largest province is Nghe An, which runs from the city of Vinh up the wide Song Ca valley. The smallest is Bac Ninh, located in the populous Red River delta.

Name Capital Population Area Name Capital Population Area

An Giang Long Xuyen 2,099,400 3,406 kmē Khanh Hoa Nha Trang 1,066,300 5,197 kmē

Bac Giang Bac Giang 1,522,000 3,822 kmē Kien Giang Rach Gia 1,542,800 6,269 kmē

Bac Kan Bac Kan 283,000 4,795 kmē Kon Tum Kon Tum 330,700 9,615 kmē

Bac Lieu Bac Lieu 756,800 2,521 kmē Lai Chau Phong Tho 227,600 7,365 kmē

Bac Ninh Bac Ninh 957,700 804 kmē Lam Dong Da Lat 1,049,900 9,765 kmē

Ba Ria-Vung Tau Vung Tau 839,000 1,975 kmē Lang Son Lang Son 715,300 8,305 kmē

Ben Tre Ben Tre 1,308,200 2,287 kmē Lao Cai Lao Cai 616,500 8,057 kmē

Binh Dinh Qui Nhon 1,481,000 6,076 kmē Long An Tan An 1,384,000 4,492 kmē

Binh Duong Thu Dao Mot 768,100 2,696 kmē Nam Dinh Nam Dinh 1,916,400 1,637 kmē

Binh Phuoc Dong Xoai 708,100 6,856 kmē Nghe An Vinh 2,913,600 16,487 kmē

Binh Thuan Phan Thiet 1,079,700 7,828 kmē Ninh Binh Ninh Binh 891,800 1,382 kmē

Ca Mau Ca Mau 1,158,000 5,192 kmē Ninh Thuan Phan Rang-Thap Cham 531,700 3,360 kmē

Can Tho (municipality) 1,112,000 1,390 kmē Phu Tho Viet Tri 1,288,400 3,519 kmē

Cao Bang Cao Bang 501,800 6,691 kmē Phu Yen Tuy Hoa 811,400 5,045 kmē

Dak Lak Buon Ma Thuot 1,667,000 13,062 kmē Quang Binh Dong Hoi 812,600 8,025 kmē

Dak Nong Gia Nghia 363,000 6,514 kmē Quang Nam Tham Ky 1,402,700 10,408 kmē

Da Nang (municipality) 715,000 1,256 kmē Quang Ngai Quang Ngai 1,206,400 5,135 kmē

Dien Bien Dien Bien Phu 440,300 8,544 kmē Quang Ninh Ha Long 1,029,900 5,899 kmē

Dong Nai Bien Hoa 2,067,200 5,895 kmē Quang Tri Dong Ha 588,600 4,746 kmē

Dong Thap Cao Lanh 1,592,600 3,238 kmē Soc Trang Soc Trang 1,213,400 3,223 kmē

Gia Lai PleiKu 1,048,000 15,496 kmē Son La Son La 922,200 14,055 kmē

Ha Giang Ha Giang 625,700 7,884 kmē Tay Ninh Tay Ninh 989,800 4,028 kmē

Hai Duong Hai Duong 1,670,800 1,648 kmē Thai Binh Thai Binh 1,814,700 1,542 kmē

Hai Phong (municipality) 1,711,100 1,503 kmē Thanh Hoa Thanh Hoa 3,509,600 11,106 kmē

Ha Nam Phu Ly 800,400 849 kmē Thua Thien-Hue Hue 1,078,900 5,009 kmē

Ha Noi (municipality) 2,154,900 921 kmē Tien Giang My Tho 1,635,700 2,367 kmē

Ha Tay Ha Dong 2,432,000 2,192 kmē Tra Vinh Tra Vinh 989,000 2,226 kmē

Ha Tinh Ha Tinh 1,284,900 6,056 kmē Tuyen Quang Tuyen Quang 692,500 5,868 kmē

Hoa Binh Hoa Binh 774,100 4,663 kmē Vinh Long Vinh Long 1,023,400 1,475 kmē

Ho Chi Minh (municipality) 5,378,100 2,095 kmē Vinh Phuc Vinh Yen 1,115,700 1,371 kmē

Hau Giang Vi Thanh 766,000 1,608 kmē Yen Bai Yen Bai 699,900 6,883 kmē

Hung Yen Hung Yen 1,091,000 928 kmē

Map

Below is a map of Vietnamese provinces and municipalities as of December 2003. It includes the changes agreed to in November 2003 (namely, the creation of Dien Bien province, the creation of Dak Nong province, and the split of Can Tho province into Can Tho municipality and Hau Giang province).

External links