Vietnam - Past and Present

In Saigon, you'll see the invigorating hustle and bustle of Vietnamese life firsthand. There are street markets, street cafes, loud stereo music and sleek new pubs where tourists chat over beer, coffee and croissants.  A young woman in the native (ao dai) dress maneuvers her motorcycle in rush-hour traffic with long hair flowing and high heels working the brake pedal.  This is truly the place to get a feel for the spirit of Vietnam.  Five years ago Hanoi was the city of bicycles and Saigon was the city of motorbikes.  Today, Hanoi is the city of motorbikes and Saigon is the city of cars.  Indeed, the traffic in Saigon has become unmanageable as there are few traffic lights and what few exist are considered oddities, never to be complied with.

High-rises, which were non-existent a few years ago, are commonplace in the cities.  Mercedes-Benzes and BMWs weave in and out of noisy traffic, on streets clogged with bicycles and motorcycles.  The country's first upscale department store comes as a shock, compared to shopping in the old Central Market.  An emerging middle class buys $400 Nokia cell phones and $7,000 Honda cycles.

In this dynamic nation of 82 million people, communist propaganda is blared daily over public loudspeakers and has become background noise to the bustle of new entrepreneurs and businessmen.  The 7.7 percent annual growth rate is second only to China's among Asian countries.

Major change has occurred in the past 10 years, as the country decided to open its market and become part of the global community.  Vietnam is on an upswing, and there is tremendous optimism that life will be much better tomorrow.  The young generation has always known peacetime and I'm impressed by their vast knowledge and desire for better careers and lives.  Hanoi and northern Vietnam have thrived since the end of the war.  Southern Vietnam has made every effort to heal the wounds of war and to boost economic growth after the liberation.  The transformation has been remarkable.

A major change is in the attitude to capitalism.  In the past five years, an estimated 140,000 private businesses have been registered in Vietnam.  Private companies are virtually the only job creators in a country where a million young people join the work force each year. 

Nike, the country's single largest private employer with about 130,000 workers, produces about $700 million worth of footwear, making Vietnam the third supplier after China and Indonesia.

Three quarters of Vietnam's population is under the age of 30, too young to remember the war, yet old enough to have seen its consequences.  I recently attended the 30^th Reunion (in Saigon) of journalists that covered the war and was both amazed and impressed at the transformation of public opinion.  Thirty years ago, the only future that awaited young Vietnamese was war.  Today, these those young people have capitalized on the dividends of peace.  Meet the new generation reaping newfound opportunities and reshaping their country's future.  

Vietnam's first postwar generation is coming of age, and these young adults-in their 20s and 30s -- are seizing opportunities unimaginable in their parents' time.  Communism is rapidly losing its grip, the doors of a free-market economy are opening, and memories of the war are fading into a distant past.  This new generation -- 80% of the population -- is making up for lost time, exploring the benefits and costs of their country's new economic and cultural future.  "Doi Moi" (the new openness) has boosted Vietnam's status among foreign firms, and licenses have gone to investors from 41 countries.