| Quang Ngai province Tỉnh Quảng Ngãi |
|
|---|---|
| — Province — | |
| Location of Quang Ngai within Vietnam | |
| Coordinates: | |
| Country | Vietnam |
| Region | South Central Coast |
| Capital | Quang Ngai |
| Government | |
| • People's Council Chair | Phạm Đình Khối |
| • People's Committee Chair | Nguyễn Xuân Huế |
| Area | |
| • Total | 5,137.6 km2 (1,983.6 sq mi) |
| Population (April 1, 2009) | |
| • Total | 1,217,159 |
| • Density | 236.9/km2 (613.6/sq mi) |
| Demographics | |
| • Ethnicities | Vietnamese, Hrê, Co, Xơ Đăng |
| Time zone | ICT (UTC+7) |
| Calling code | 55 |
| ISO 3166 code | VN-29 |
| Website | quangngai.gov.vn |
Quảng Ngãi () is a province in the South Central Coast region of Vietnam, on the coast of South China Sea. It is located 883 km south of Hanoi and 838 km north of Ho Chi Minh City.
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The ancient Sa Huynh culture inhabited what is now Quang Ngai. Remains of it were found in Sa Huynh in Duc Pho District in southern Quang Ngai province. Within Champa, the region that is now Quang Ngai was less significant than its powerful neighbours to the north and south (in Quang Nam Province and Vijaya in Binh Dinh Province). There are only a few Cham remains in the province.[1] The area became part of Vietnam together with Vijaya (Binh Dinh Province) in 1471.
In the early 19th century the Long Wall of Quang Ngai was constructed in the province. It improved security among the Vietnamese and Hre people and facilitated trade.[2]
Quang Ngai Province has long been particularly resistant to foreign occupiers. It was one of the first provinces in central Vietnam (together with Quang Tri Province) to organize self-defence forces in March 1945, with the famous Ba To Guerilla Unit mobilizing tens of thousands of peasants.[3]
Quảng Ngãi Province was known as an NLF (Vietcong) stronghold during the Vietnam War and was the site of the infamous Binh Hoa massacre, Dien Nien-Phuoc Binh Massacre in 1966 and My Lai Massacre in 1968, as well as Operations Malheur I and Malheur II and Operation Quyet Thang 202. It produced famous war literature on both sides of the conflict: The now-famous wartime diary of NLF medic Đặng Thùy Trâm was written here, and from an American perspective, Quảng Ngãi Province is the major setting of Tim O'Brien's The Things They Carried.
Quảng Ngãi is divided into 13 districts:
The city of Quảng Ngãi is its own municipality.
Quang Ngai's topography is dominated by a large plain along the coast and in the center of the province and by mountains and hills in the west and along its borders with Quang Nam Province and Binh Dinh Province. Lowlands also extend further inland along Tra Khuc River.[4] The province's highest peak is at 1630m in the west of the province near the border to Quang Nam.[5] The coastline is relatively straight in most of the south and central part of the province (unusual for the South Central Coast), but features several capes north of Quang Ngai City.[4]
Quang Ngai's largest river is Tra Khuc River. Other important rivers are Tra Bong River in the north and Ve River in the south of the province. The Ly Son Islands belong to Quang Ngai.
Quang Ngai's GDP per capita was 7.82 million VND in 2007, making it the second poorest province in the South Central Coast (after Ninh Thuan Province). This was due to weaknesses in all major sector of the economy (agriculture, industry, services).[6] However, Quang Ngai's economy has been booming since then, mostly due to a spectacular increase in industrial GDP from Dung Quat Economic Zone. It grew by 21% in 2009, increasing GDP per capita to 15.2 million VND, higher than that of its neighbours Quang Nam Province and Binh Dinh Province.[7] Exports increased from 31 million US$ in 2005 to 182 million in 2009.[7]
The number of employed people increased from 571,400 in 2000 to 704,700, despite a significant decline agricultural and fishing employment. The booming industrial sector created 63,200 jobs in the period and employs 99,200 as of 2007. Despite lacking behind the industrial sector in terms of value-added, the service sector employed 180,500 people in 2007 compared to 57,900 in 2000.[7]
Despite its large agricultural area, Quang Ngai's agricultural GDP is low compared to other provinces in the region. Rice cultivation takes up the largest area, concentrated around Quang Ngai City.[4] 381,200t of rice were harvested in 2007.[8] Other important crops include sugar-cane, peanuts, and coconuts. There is a large number of cattle in the province (287,800 in 2007)[8], mostly in the northwest and southwest.[4]
| Crop | Area | Output (2007)[8] | % of national[6] | Main Location(s)[4] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sugar-cane | 7300ha | 390,900t | 2.25 | Binh Son District |
| Peanuts | 5700ha | 11,100t | 2.2 | Duc Pho District |
| Coconuts | 2700ha | 13,726t | 1.31 | Mo Duc District |
Quang Ngai's fishing output as share of total national output is larger than its population share. It benefits from Ly Son Island. However, in contrast to the rest of the region, there is a lack of rich fishing grounds off the coast of Quang Ngai Province.[4]
Quang Ngai City is a secondary industrial center of the South Central Coast with processing of agricultural products and production of some paper and machinery.[4] Other products include beer (38.3 million litres in 2007), textiles (5577 pieces), bricks (303 million), chemical fertilizer (24kt), and hand farming tools (352,000 pieces).[8] Furniture is also produced in Quang Ngai and it is one of the major export products, accounting for 11.475 million US$ in 2007.[8]
Industrial GDP has more than tripled between 2000 and 2007, growing by an average yearly rate of 18.64%.[6] This was the second highest growth rate in the South Central Coast after Binh Thuan Province. Industry has grown even faster since then, especially because of Dung Quat Economic Zone. Dung Quat refinery, Vietnam's first oil refinery, started production in February 2009. In the same year, industrial gross output increased by 144.7% and the share of industry in the province's GDP surged from 36.2% in 2008 to 46.3% in 2009.[7] This share is much higher than that of other provinces in the region and even slightly higher than that of Da Nang. The province's prospects for industry may also be changing outside Dung Quat Economic Zone. Vinatex bought Dai Cat Tuong, a formerly bankrupt textile manufacturer, in 2011 and plans to expand its production in Quang Ngai significantly.[9]
Quang Ngai's industry was dominated by the state sector (mostly centrally managed companies) until 2005, after which most of the state industry was (officially) privatized. The state sector's share decreased from 2/3 in 2000 to around 1/8 in 2007, while there was also a restructuring within the state sector from central state to locally managed state enterprises.[8]
National Road 1A and the North-South Railway run through the province. The main railway station is Quang Ngai Railway Station. National Road 24 connects Quang Ngai to Kon Tum in the Central Highlands. It has its starting point at Thach Tru on National Road 1A 28km south of Quang Ngai City and passes through Ba To District.[10]
The nearest airport is Chu Lai International Airport, just north of Quang Ngai Province.
The province has a major port in Dung Quat Economic Zone, namely Dung Quat Port, in the north of the province. Sa Ky Port is a local port north of Quang Ngai City. It serves as a fishing and small cargo port and has regular ferry connections to Ly Son Island.
There is a hydroelectric station on Tra Khuc River in the center of the province. It is located near the border of Son Ha District with Tu Nghia District and Son Thinh District.[5] As of 2007, 401 million kwh were generated in the province.[8]
Quang Ngai Province had a population of 1,219,200 in 2009.[7] Around 40% of it is concentrated in Quang Ngai City and the two districts just north and south of it (Sơn Tịnh and Tư Nghĩa), where population density ranges from over 500 to 3600/km2). Population density in most of coastal Quang Ngai is around 400/km2. The five western districts have population densities of less than 100/km2, three of them (Tây Trà, Sơn Tây, and Ba Tơ) even less than 50/km2.[5] Quang Ngai is the least urbanized province of the South Central Coast, with only 14.4% of the population living in cities and towns.[6] The population grew by an annual average of 1% between 2000 and 2007, while the growth of the urban population was 3.9% on average, one of the highest rates in the region.[6]
The coastal lowlands are mostly ethnically homogeneous, with almost the entire population (>99%) made up of Kinh people. There are large Hrê communities in the southwest of the province. They made up the majority of the population in the districts of Ba Tơ, Sơn Hà (which then also included Sơn Tây), and Minh Long as of 1996.[11] A slight majority in Trà Bồng District (which then also included Tây Trà District) were Co people.[11] There is also a small minority of Xê Đăng in Sơn Hà District.[11]
| Quang Nam province | ||||
| Kon Tum province | South China Sea | |||
| Quang Ngai province | ||||
| Gia Lai province | Binh Dinh province |
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