Vietnamese most optimistic people worldwide

Thus claimed Gallup International. In 2004, economic growth reached 8.5%. But there are nagging problems of corruption and lack of freedom.

Hanoi (AsiaNews/SCMP) – A country notorious for one of the toughest, bloodiest wars ever, and marked by a 25% poverty rate, is also the most optimistic about its future. A series of international surveys found that at the end of 2005, the population of Vietnam, compared to the rest of the world, had a very positive vision of the economy and prospects for quality of life. According to Gallup International, around 75% of Vietnamese said that next year will be better than this year. This is the third year running that Vietnam takes first place in international surveys on optimism.

Vu Song Tuan, 29, who works with foreign company in Hanoi, said: "Vietnamese people have lived very hard lives but now our lives have improved a lot. Life for my family was not good at all 10 years ago, but now we have more things and we can go where we want to go."

Sources of AsiaNews in Ho Chi Minh City confirm the view of optimism: "The economy is growing, richness is spreading; Vietnam is full of tourists. Thank God, we were not affected by the tsunami and many tourists flowed here." At the same time, the sources did not cover up the problems: "There is still extreme poverty, too many restrictions of freedom and plenty of corruption."

In recent decades, Vietnam – thanks to Communism – was impoverished and became one of the most repressive states anywhere. In 1986, economic reforms (doi moi) started but they were never fully implemented. In recent years, the country has been liberalizing its economy more and more, hoping to join the WTO. In 2004, Vietnam's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rose by 8.5%, second only to China's.

• vietnam
• economy
• optimism
• world
• trade
• organization