By 1975, Vietnam was not just poor. It was physically devastated and almost completely isolated from the rest of the world. Roughly 80 percent of the population lived below the poverty line. Per capita GDP stood at about $200. The war had ended, but its scars were everywhere. An estimated three million people had died, and more than 1.5 million had fled the country.
To make matters worse, Vietnam was still largely an agrarian society facing persistent famine.
In the West, the mood was dismissive. Many openly believed Vietnam should be left to rot. Few thought it had any real chance of development. Who wouldn’t give up on a country in such condition? Literacy was estimated at around 15 percent. The small educated class that existed was leaving in large numbers. The brain drain was severe. And layered on top of all this was a widespread belief that the Communists simply did not know how to run an economy. Even Lee Kuan Yew was skeptical.
Today, the picture could not be more different.
Vietnam’s per capita GDP now exceeds $5,000. Less than 3 percent of the population lives in multidimensional poverty. Literacy has climbed to 96 percent. Vietnam is now among the top 20 trading nations in the world. Its economy has grown from about $5 billion to over $500 billion, and it continues to expand at an average rate of around 7 percent annually.
Vietnam stands as a powerful reminder of never say never in development. The future of any nation is not fixed by its past. In the end, it is shaped by the choices, discipline, and determination of its people.
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