AP PHOTOS: In Vietnam, vibrant Ho Chi Minh City is a magnet that pulls in millions

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A couple view the skyline of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Scooter commuters wait for a traffic light to change at an intersection in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Residents get free haircuts from trainee stylists in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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A fruit vendor pushes her cart along the street as buildings under construction are seen in the distance in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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A billboard campaigning for each family to have two children in an effort to improve the birth rate stands along the street in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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People watch a women’s basketball tournament in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Local residents toast with beer as they gather for karaoke in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Anh Nguyen, foreground, sets up her phone to take a group photo with her friends at a park in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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A shopper sitting on a scooter counts money after buying food from a street vendor in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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A maintenance worker takes in the view of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 21, 2024, as ships cruise along the Saigon River. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Pallbearers carry a casket through neighborhoods as part of a funeral procession in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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A bride and groom take a group picture with their guests after a wedding ceremony in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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People exercise at a park in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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An instructor gives a dance lesson to his student at a park in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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People dine on a sidewalk in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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A boy rides an electric hoverboard in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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A man plays pool in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Residents play da cau at a park in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 13, 2024. Da cau is a recreational sport popular in Vietnam. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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A dog sits on a scooter as its owner pays for his purchase from a food vendor in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Secondary school band members rehearse for an event in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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A mechanic works on a scooter at a repair shop in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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A woman buys bread from a street vendor as a Vietnamese flag is lit by morning sunlight in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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Commuters on scooters fill the street during morning rush hour in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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A woman dressed as a character poses for photos at a park in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

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A food vendor wipes her face while preparing for business in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Jan. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

By JAE C. HONG and ANIRUDDHA GHOSAL

HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam (AP) — From the sky, the sprawling Ho Chi Minh City in southern Vietnam appears to erupt from the green expanse of the riverine delta that surrounds it.

Millions of lives – an estimated 9.3 million in 2023, according to the U.N. World Urbanization Prospects – intersect in Vietnam’s financial capital. Young couples hold hands and walk by the Saigon River. Thousands perched on scooters wait at traffic lights. Trainee hairstylists give residents free haircuts on the streets.

At parks, friends meet and take group photos, or they may get together for beer and karaoke. Kids ride electric hoverboards, or they may play da cau, a sport dating back nearly 1,500 years that involves kicking a shuttlecock.

To be a part of this tapestry for millions living in the adjoining Mekong region is viewed as the most reliable way toward economic security. Incomes from traditional jobs like farming or aquaculture aren’t as reliable as they used to be for reasons ranging from saltwater intrusion in farms or the water table being depleted because of climate change or excessive sand mining, said Mimi Vu, a migration specialist based in Ho Chi Minh City.

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“Migration because of climate change and because of economic prospects are intertwined. It’s very hard to separate the two,” Vu said.

This movement to Vietnam’s largest city is one reason why its population has nearly doubled in the past two decades despite the city having one of the lowest birth rates in the country. Fears of future labor shortages have prompted the government to design policies encouraging families to have more children.

But that low-lying, concentrated population is more vulnerable to the many climate risks straining the city’s infrastructure, like extreme heat and flooding from rising sea levels.

And the many migrants who earn a living by working on the streets — the thousands that sell street food, push carts of fruit through searingly hot alleys during the day, or work at construction sites — are often the most vulnerable.

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