Substantial regional variation is found in indicators of economic size and
development. Disparity as measured by the ratio of highest to lowest
regional value was 2 1: 1, 30: 1, and 19: 1 'for per capita gross domestic
product, fiscal revenue, and local government investment, respectively.
Urban areas and the Southeast and Mekong Delta regions clearly are in more
advantageous economic positions as compared to rural areas and the other
five geographic regions. The larger role played by the nonstate fcollective
and private) sector and greater linkages with the rest of the world through
trade and foreign investment contribute to the higher stages of economic
development found in the urban areas and Southeast and Mekong Delta
regions. The fiscal system does bring about a degree of equalization;
however, per capita fiscal expenditures in Hanoi are still six times the level in
Hai Hung province in the Red River Delta. For gross domestic product there
is evidence that subnational variation is increasing in the reform period.