Vietnamese Government

According to Vietnam’s Constitution, the Vietnamese government is a combination of law-governed state and socialist government. Here is an overview of Vietnam's government.

Capital: Hanoi

Independence: September 2nd, 1945

National Colors: red, yellow

Ruling Party: Communist Party of Vietnam

Governance: Political Bureau (14 members), Central Committee of the Party (125 members), National Assembly (500 members)

Elections/appointments: President indirectly elected by the National Assembly for a single 5-year term; the President appoints the Primister Minister and Cabinet

Communist Party

The Vietnamese government is under the leadership of the Communist Party. The head of the Communist Party is called General Secretary. Tran Phu was the first one to hold this position. The current General Secretary in Vietnam is Nguyen Phu Trong. He has held this position since January 19th, 2011.

National Assembly

The National Assembly is the only organ of the state that owns constitutional and legislative power. The election to select members of the National Assembly happens every five years. National Assembly has the right to elect the President and the Prime Minister of the state. Both President and Prime Minister have the right to elect people for several key positions with the approval of the National Assembly.

National Assembly Meeting

State President

The presidency lasts five years, similar to the term of the National Assembly. When the term ends, the President will continue to be in charge of the position until the National Assembly chooses a new one. In the Vietnamese government model, the President is the head of the state, the one who represents the state in international stages. Besides, the President is also the Head of the People's Armed Force.

Ho Chi Minh was the first president of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam and had held this position for 24 years. The first president of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam was Ton Duc Thang (term: 1976 - 1980), and the current one is Nguyen Phu Trong, who was elected on October 22nd, 2018 to replace the late Tran Dai Quang (term: 2016 - 2018).

Prime Minister

The term of a Prime Minister also lasts five years. The Prime Minister is the head of government. He or she is in charge of directing the work of government members. Under the Prime Minister, there Deputy Prime Minister and Ministers who lead ministries. The current Prime Minister of Vietnam is Nguyen Xuan Phuc. He has held this position since April 7th, 2016.

Summary of the Vietnamese Government

Above is an overview of how the Vietnamese government is structured. Learn more of other useful Vietnam travel guides.