The Rural-Urban Transition in Viet Nam: Some Selected Issues

Abstract

The paper analyzes the process of urban-rural transition under way in Vietnam in the context of its transition lo a market economy. In managing this process of change, the government will face important choices on the patterns of urban and rural development and the linkages between the two. Based on how the choices are made, the impact on well-being could be quite different. A negative scenario could include an overconcentration of resources in one or two metropolitan centers, with poor linkages to rural development, and the increasing gap between urban and rural areas having negative social consequences on the cities and the countryside. A more virtuous path would emphasize linkages between urban and rural development. Policy and investment options in the transition are explored within the emerging pattern of regional development. Vietnam has two clearly defined core areas: Hanoi-1 laiphong in the north, and Ho Chi Minin City- in the south, which will be the two major centers for urban growth. The hinterlands of these two urban centers (the Red River and Mekong Deltas) vary significantly in their demography and resource endowments, sug-gesting the need for developing differing approaches. The government is committed to the development of a third growth pole in the central part of the country (around Da Nang). The growth potential here is more problematic and might depend on major develop-ments in the regional transport system, including transborder arterial roads, a deep water port, and a conscious effort to link the coastal area to its hinterland.