Map of Bangladesh | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide1989199019911992199319941995199619971998199920002001200220032004200520062007200820092010201120122013201420152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 | More stats

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Background: Bangladesh came into existence in 1971 when Bengali East Pakistan seceded from its union with West Pakistan. A third of this desperately poor country annually floods during the monsoon rainy season hampering normal economic development.


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Location: Southern Asia bordering the Bay of Bengal between Burma and India

Geographic coordinates: 24 00 N 90 00 E

Map reference: Asia

Area
Comparative: slightly smaller than Wisconsin

Land boundaries

Coastline: 580 km

Maritime claims

Climate: tropical; cool dry winter (October to March); hot humid summer (March to June); cool rainy monsoon (June to October)

Terrain: mostly flat alluvial plain; hilly in southeast

Elevation

Natural resources: natural gas arable land: timber

Land use

Irrigated land: 31,000 km² (1993 est.)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards: droughts cyclones; much of the country routinely flooded during the summer monsoon season

Geography


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Population: 129,194,224 (July 2000 est.)
Growth rate: 1.59% (2000 est.)
Below poverty line: 35.6% (FY95/96 est.)

Nationality

Ethnic groups: Bengali 98% Biharis 250,000 tribals less than 1 million

Languages: Bangla (official) English

Religions: Muslim 88.3% Hindu 10.5% other 1.2%

Demographic profile

Age structure

Dependency ratios

Median age

Population growth rate: 1.59% (2000 est.)

Birth rate: 25.44 births/1000 population (2000 est.)

Death rate: 8.73 deaths/1000 population (2000 est.)

Net migration rate: -0.77 migrant(s)/1000 population (2000 est.)

Population distribution

Urbanization

Major urban areas

Environment
Current issues: many people are landless and forced to live on and cultivate flood-prone land; limited access to potable water; water-borne diseases prevalent; water pollution especially of fishing areas results from the use of commercial pesticides; intermittent water shortages because of falling water tables in the northern and central parts of the country; soil degradation; deforestation; severe overpopulation

Air pollutants

Sex ratio

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate: 71.66 deaths/1000 live births (2000 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

Total fertility rate: 2.85 children born/woman (2000 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source

Current health expenditure

Physicians density

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access

Hiv/Aids

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures

Literacy

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment


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Country name

Government type: republic

Capital: Dhaka

Administrative divisions: 5 divisions; Barisal Chittagong Dhaka Khulna Rajshahi

Dependent areas

Independence: 16 December 1971 (from Pakistan)

National holiday: Independence Day 26 March (1971)

Constitution: 4 November 1972 effective 16 December 1972 suspended following coup of 24 March 1982 restored 10 November 1986 amended many times

Legal system: based on English common law

International law organization participation

Citizenship

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch

Legislative branch: unicameral National Parliament or Jatiya Sangsad (330 seats; 300 elected by popular vote from single territorial constituencies 30 seats reserved for women; members serve five-year terms)

Judicial branch: Supreme Court the Chief Justices and other judges are appointed by the president

Political parties and leaders: Awami League or AL [Sheikh HASINA Wajed]; Bangladesh Communist Party or BCP [Saifuddin Ahmed MANIK]; Bangladesh Nationalist Party or BNP [Khaleda ZIAur Rahman]; Jamaat-E-Islami or JI [Motiur Rahman NIZAMI]; Jatiyo Party or JP [Hussain Mohammad ERSHAD]

International organization participation: AsDB C CCC CP ESCAP FAO G-77 IAEA IBRD ICAO ICC ICFTU ICRM IDA IDB IFAD IFC IFRCS IHO (pending member) ILO IMF IMO Inmarsat Intelsat Interpol IOC IOM ISO ITU MINURSO MONUC NAM OIC OPCW SAARC UN UN Security Council (temporary) UNCTAD UNESCO UNHCR UNIDO UNIKOM UNMIBH UNMIK UNMOP UNMOT UNOMIG UNTAET UNU UPU WCL WFTU WHO WIPO WMO WToO WTrO

Diplomatic representation

Flag description: green with a large red disk slightly to the hoist side of center; the red sun of freedom represents the blood shed to achieve independence; the green field symbolizes the lush countryside and secondarily the traditional color of Islam

National symbols

National anthem

National heritage


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Economy overview: Despite sustained domestic and international efforts to improve economic and demographic prospects Bangladesh remains one of the world's poorest most densely populated and least developed nations. The economy is largely agricultural with the cultivation of rice the single most important activity in the economy. Major impediments to growth include frequent cyclones and floods the inefficiency of state-owned enterprises a rapidly growing labor force that cannot be absorbed by agriculture delays in exploiting energy resources (natural gas) inadequate power supplies and slow implementation of economic reforms. Prime Minister Sheikh HASINA Wajed's Awami League government has made some headway improving the climate for foreign investors and liberalizing the capital markets; for example it has negotiated with foreign firms for oil and gas exploration better countrywide distribution of cooking gas and the construction of natural gas pipelines and power plants. Progress on other economic reforms has been halting because of opposition from the bureaucracy public sector unions and other vested interest groups. The especially severe floods of 1998 increased the country's reliance on large-scale international aid. So far the East Asian financial crisis has not had major impact on the economy.

Real gdp purchasing power parity

Real gdp growth rate: 5.2% (1999 est.)

Real gdp per capita: purchasing power parity - $1470 (1999 est.)

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin

Agriculture products: rice jute tea wheat sugarcane potatoes; beef milk poultry tobacco pulses oilseeds spices fruit

Industries: cotton textiles jute garments tea processing paper newsprint cement chemical fertilizer light engineering sugar

Industrial production growth rate: 2.5% (1997 est.)

Labor force: 56 million (1995-96)
By occupation agriculture: 63%
By occupation services: 26%
By occupation industry: 11% (FY95/96)

Unemployment rate: 35.2% (1996)

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line: 35.6% (FY95/96 est.)

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget

Taxes and other revenues

Public debt

Revenue

Fiscal year: 1 July - 30 June

Inflation rate consumer prices: 9% (FY98/99 est.)

Central bank discount rate

Commercial bank prime lending rate

Stock of narrow money

Stock of broad money

Stock of domestic credit

Market value of publicly traded shares

Current account balance

Exports: $5.1 billion (1998)
Commodities: garments jute and jute goods leather frozen fish and seafood
Partners: US 33% Germany 10% UK 9% France 6% Italy 5% (1997)

Imports: $8.01 billion (1998)
Commodities: machinery and equipment chemicals iron and steel textiles raw cotton food crude oil and petroleum products cement
Partners: India 12% China 9% Japan 7% Hong Kong 6% South Korea 6% (1997)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Debt external: $16.5 billion (1998)

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates: taka (Tk) per US$1 - 51.000 (January 2000) 49.085 (1999) 46.906 (1998) 43.892 (1997) 41.794 (1996) 40.278 (1995)


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Electricity
Production: 12.5 billion kWh (1999 est.)
Consumption: 11.039 billion kWh (1998)
Exports: 0 kWh (1999)
Imports: 0 kWh (1999)

Coal

Petroleum

Crude oil

Refined petroleum

Natural gas

Carbon dioxide emissions

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones
Main lines in use: 470,000 (1998)
Mobile cellular: 41,000 (1998)

Telephone system

Broadcast media

Internet
Service providers isps: 6 (1999)

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures
Dollar figure: $559 million (FY96/97)
Percent of gdp: 1.8% (FY96/97)

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: 16 (1999 est.)

Heliports

Pipelines: natural gas 1220 km

Railways

Roadways

Waterways: 5,150-8,046 km navigable waterways (includes 2,575-3,058 km main cargo routes)

Merchant marine

Ports and terminals


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Disputes international: a portion of the boundary with India is indefinite; dispute with India over South Talpatty/New Moore Island

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs: transit country for illegal drugs produced in neighboring countries