Vietnam's diaspora is shaping the country their parents fled

Mint

4 days ago

Fifty years ago Thinh Nguyen left his homeland aboard an American navy ship. Some of his compatriots escaped in helicopters. Tens of thousands fled in makeshift boats. Many more, including Mr Nguyen's father and brother, were left behind as troops from North Vietnam stormed into Saigon, then the capital of American-backed South Vietnam. The chaotic evacuation marked the end of the Vietnam war, badly damaged American credibility and left Vietnam in Communist hands. It also helped create one of the world's biggest diasporas.
Today, the Vietnamese diaspora is a force of around 5m people, living and working everywhere from America to eastern Europe. They also do a lot for Vietnam. They send back roughly $16bn of remittances a year, one of the highest hauls in Asia and greater than the diasporas of Indonesia or Thailand. But far more than their money, the people themselves are transforming the home country. Half a century on, Vietnamese emigrants and their children are coming back, bringing with them not just wealth but also the skills and education they have picked up abroad. Hundreds of thousands of overseas Vietnamese, who are known as 'Viet Kieu', visit their homeland every year. Official data on how many stay permanently are scarce, but many do.
The flow began slowly in the 1990s, when memories of war were still fresh. The government started to encourage Viet Kieu to return, describing them as 'an inseparable part of the Vietnamese nation'. Some came back to start businesses after the Communists opened up the economy through market reforms called doi moi. Mr Nguyen, who had worked in Silicon Valley, returned in 2002 to found a software company. Vietnam was 'the new El Dorado' and 'startup heaven', he says, because costs were low. His return coincided with a thaw in relations with America, which helped Vietnam develop its successful, export-oriented economic model.
In the years since Mr Nguyen arrived, Vietnam's economy has boomed. Last year it grew by 7%, faster than any other country in Asia. Companies such as Samsung and Apple have set up in Vietnam, which is now a crucial cog in global supply chains, exporting everything from smartphones to trainers. The diaspora is returning to take up opportunities in these bustling tech and manufacturing industries, as well as many others. They can use their upbringing abroad to their advantage: some American-Vietnamese work for Intel, which assembles chips in Vietnam.
Viet Kieu also come to connect with their roots. Having grown up abroad, they want to see what their homeland is like and improve their language skills. It is not always an easy transition. John Vu, a 33-year-old who grew up in America, moved to Saigon—known today as Ho Chi Minh City—in 2019 and organises meet-ups for Viet Kieu. He says some complain that 'they stand out like a sore thumb' and that locals speak English to them even when they try to speak Vietnamese. Younger returnees also face resistance from their parents, who knew a different Vietnam.
Celebrations for the 50th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam war—which the government calls 'Reunification Day'—were complicated for some Viet Kieu. On April 30th tens of thousands of Vietnamese gawped at fireworks and fighter jets soaring above tanks and troops in Ho Chi Minh City. Mr Nguyen stayed at home. To him, having lived through the fall of Saigon, 'it is not a cause for celebration.' But younger Viet Kieu, as well as many local Vietnamese, do not have the same painful memories. Mimi Vu (no relation), who moved from America several years ago, was among those who felt 'happy the country is united'. Some, though, were just happy to get a few days off work.