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Geographical Review April 1996, 86(2), pp. 178-197. Doi Moi Policy and the Small-Enterprise Boom in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam Donald Freeman Live poultry on their way to market, Ho Chi Minh City, May 1995. (Author's photograph). ABSTRACT: Contemporary Vietnam's large and dynamic Ho Chi Minh City is undergoing an economic upswing often attributed to Doi Moi (Renovation), a sudden reversal in 1986 of Communist Party policy. Sharing in this boom is the huge urban informal sector comprising numerous and widely distributed petty enterprises, whose importance has often been overlooked. This study highlights the informal sector as an agent leading to Doi Moi. It presents evidence revealing that, before 1986, petty enterprises, informal banking and irregular trading helped lay the foundations for successful liberalization of national economic policies and for the present pattern of development in Ho Chi Minh City. Key Words: Doi Moi Policy, Ho Chi Minh City, informal sector, petty enterprises, vietnam. DR. FREEMAN is a professor of geography at York University, North York, Ontario, Canada M3J 1P3. To contact the author: Mail: Professor Donald B. Freeman York University Department Of Geography 4700 Keele St. North York, Ontario CANADA M3J 1P3 Phone: (416) 736-5107, (416) 736-5988 fax Email - Donald Freeman -- dfreeman@yorku.edu