President Tran Duc Luong Tran Duc Luong President Tran Duc Luong was born in Pho Khanh village in Duc Pho District of Quang Ngai Province on the central coast on May 5, 1937. He was an 18-year-old student when he regrouped to north Viet Nam after the country was divided into northern and southern parts under provisions of the Geneva Agreement on Viet Nam signed in 1954. He worked as a geology technician for five years until he ecame leader of Geological Group 4 attached to the League of Geological Groups Number 20 for another five years until April 1964 when he was appointed deputy leader of the League. Two years later he was admitted to study geology at the Mining and Geology College. Mr. Luong became the deputy director of the Geological Map Department in February 1970. Seven years and five months later he became deputy director and then director of the League of Geological Map Groups. In September 1979 he was appointed general director of the General Department of Geology. Three years later Mr. Luong went to the former Soviet Union and studied economic management at the former USSR Academy of Economics. In the same year of 1981 Mr. Luong was elected to the National Assembly at its seventh legislature and became deputy chairman and then chairman of the National Assembly Science and Technology Commission. He was re-appointed as General Director of the Mining and Geology General Department in March 1982. Nearly five years later in February 1987, he was elected vice chairman of the Council of Ministers and Viet Nam's permanent representative to the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance for Socialist Countries. He was re-elected as Deputy Prime Minister in 1992 and President of Viet Nam in 1997. President Tran Duc Luong was re-elected in August 2002. Mr. Luong joined the Communist Party of Viet Nam in December 19, 1959. His first position in the party organisation was as secretary of both the Party cell and the chapter of Viet Nam's Lobour Youth Union (now the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union) for Geological Group 4. In April 1964 Mr. Luong was Party cell secretary for the League of Geology Groups Number 20 and member of the exxecutive Party Committee for Viet Nam geological sector. He became member of the Party Committee and secretary of the Viet Nam's Labour Youth Union for the Mining and Geological College between 1966 and 1969. He became an executive member of the Party Committee for the Geological Map Department in February 1970 and its Party Committee secretary nine years later. In 1976, he completed a training course for sennior Party officials at Nguyen Ai Quoc Institute. He was elected as alternate member to the CPV Central Committee in March 1982 and became a full member to the Party Central Committee at the next National Party congress in June 1991. Mr. Luong became member of the Party Central Committee and was elected to its Political Bureau at the eight National Party Congress in June 1996 and the nineth National Party Congress in April 2001. Learn about Vietnam Government | Public services | History | Culture | Geography | Other resources