Cần Thơ (Standard Vietnamese: Vietnamese: [kə̂n tʰəː] (listen), Southern accent: Vietnamese: [kʌŋ˨˩ tʰəː] (listen)) is the fourth largest city in Vietnam, and the largest city in the Mekong Delta.^[3][4]

It is noted for its floating market, rice paper-making village, and picturesque rural canals.^[4] It had a population of 1.2 million as of 2011, it has population of 1,520,000 until June 2018, and is located on the south bank of the Hau River, a distributary of the Mekong River. In 2007, about 50 people died when the Cần Thơ Bridge collapsed, causing Vietnam's worst engineering disaster.^[5] In 2011, Can Tho International Airport opened.^[6]

The city is nicknamed the "western capital" (Tây Đô), and is located 169 kilometres (105 miles) from Ho Chi Minh City.

The city is an independent municipality at the same level as provinces of Vietnam. It was created in the beginning of 2004 by a split of the former Cần Thơ Province into two new administrative units: Cần Thơ City and Hậu Giang Province.

Cần Thơ is subdivided into nine district-level sub-divisions:

They are further subdivided into five commune-level towns (or townlets), 36 communes, and 44 wards.

Ninh Kiều, which has the well-known port Ninh Kiều port, is the center district and also the most populated and wealthiest of these districts.^[7]

The city borders the provinces of An Giang, Hậu Giang, Kiên Giang, Vĩnh Long and Đồng Tháp.

Cần Thơ is connected to the rest of the country by National Route 1A and Can Tho International Airport. The city's bridge which is now completed, is the longest cable-stayed bridge in south-east Asia. The six-lane Saigon–Cần Thơ Expressway is being built in parts from Hồ Chí Minh City to Mỹ Tho. The hydrofoil express boat links this city with Ho Chi Minh City.. There are many vehicles here such as: taxi, grab bikes, buses, van, coaches and so on.

The Mekong Delta is considered to be the "rice basket of Vietnam", contributing more than half of the nation's rice production. People say of Cần Thơ:

Cần Thơ is famous for its floating markets, where people sell and buy things on the river, as well as the bird gardens and the port of Ninh Kiều. The city offers a wide range of tropical fruits such as pomelo, longan, jackfruit, mango, guava, banana, rambutan, mangosteen, dragon fruit and durian. The Cần Thơ City Museum has exhibits on the city's history.^[8]

Tourist attractions

Academic institutions in the city are Cần Thơ University, Cần Thơ Department of Education and Training, Cần Thơ University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Tây Đô University, Nam Cần Thơ University, Cần Thơ College, College of Foreign Economic Relations – Cần Thơ Branch, Medical College, Can Tho Technical Economic College^[11] and Vocational College, with its well-known College of Agriculture and Mekong Delta Rice Research Institute, Cần Thơ University of Technology

Under the Köppen climate classification, Cần Thơ has a tropical wet and dry climate. Cần Thơ's climate features two seasons: rainy, from May to November; and dry, from December to April. Average annual humidity is 83%, rainfall 1,635 mm (64 in) and temperature 27 °C (81 °F).

After 120 years of development, the city now is the delta's most important center of economics, culture, science, and technology. It has a large freshwater port and two industrial parks.