CRS History in Vietnam

In Vietnam, approximately 80 percent of the country's 77 million people live in rural areas, and two-thirds of them depend on agriculture for a living. The challenges facing rural areas are numerous. Decades of conflict have left infrastructure underdeveloped and in disrepair. Land is scarce and employment opportunities are limited. Access to credit, vocational training, and technology, as well as basic social services, remain poor. The unemployment and land shortages have led to increased migration and social problems.

Further complicating the situation is the fact that Vietnam is plagued by recurrent natural disasters. Over the last few years, typhoons and drought have caused significant declines in agricultural production and incomes in some rural areas. Typhoon Linda devastated the southern provinces of the Mekong Delta in late 1997. The northern and central provinces were hit by drought in 1998, followed by severe floods in 1999 and 2000.

CRS worked in the former South Vietnam from 1954 to 1975. The agency has had a presence in the unified Vietnam since 1991 and opened its current office in Hanoi in 1994.