Average life expectancy has been extended around 5 years since the mid-1980 s to reach 67 years old today. Nine out of ten adults are now literate. Primary and lower secondary school enrolment rates have increased, offering more hope and opportunity for the nation s children. Infant mortality has declined to 37 per 1,000 live births, from around 50 per 1,000 live births in the 1980s. Real social spending per capita, following initial declines during the latter half of 1980s has now surpassed its previous peaks.
More people now have access to clean water sanitation and better health care.
In short, all available data and evidence strongly suggest that doi moi has substantially improved the quantity and quality for the vast majority of people in Viet Nam. In retrospect, most of doi moi s success has been based on a significant improvement in governance, particularly State leadership in expanding people s participation and choices in a wide variety of areas, especially in the private sector. Changes in land policy in the latter half of the 1980s, especially the return of land to families from large and inefficient, centrally controlled State co-operatives, has provided rural families with much greater choice on how to best use and manage agricultural land. As a result rice production has boomed in Viet Nam has been transformed from a significant rice importer in the mid 1980s to the world s second largest rice exporter. In addition, farming families have responded to expanded choices by diversifying towards higher value added cash crops such as coffee, tea, rubber and other, and Viet Nam is now the third largest exporter of coffee.