| Bangladesh |
Introduction Geography People Government Economy Communications Transportation Military Transnational Issues

Bangladesh | Introduction | Top of Page

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

Bangladesh | Geography | Top of Page

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

Geographic coordinates: | 24 00 N, 90 00 E

Map references: | Asia

Area: | total: 144,000 sq km land: 133,910 sq km water: 10,090 sq km

Area - comparative: | slightly smaller than Wisconsin

Land boundaries: | total: 4,246 km border countries: Burma 193 km, India 4,053 km

Coastline: | 580 km

Maritime claims: | contiguous zone: 18 NM continental shelf: up to the outer limits of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM

Climate: | tropical; mild winter (October to March); hot, humid summer (March to June); humid, warm rainy monsoon (June to October)

Terrain: | mostly flat alluvial plain; hilly in southeast

Elevation extremes: | lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Keokradong 1,230 m

Natural resources: | natural gas, arable land, timber, coal

Land use: | arable land: 73% permanent crops: 2% permanent pastures: 5% forests and woodland: 15% other: 5% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: | 31,000 sq km (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: | droughts, cyclones; much of the country routinely inundated during the summer monsoon season

Environment - current issues: | many people are landless and forced to live on and cultivate flood-prone land; water-borne diseases prevalent in surface water; water pollution, especially of fishing areas, results from the use of commercial pesticides; ground water contaminated by naturally-occurring arsenic; intermittent water shortages because of falling water tables in the northern and central parts of the country; soil degradation and erosion; deforestation; severe overpopulation

Environment - international agreements: | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea

Bangladesh | People | Top of Page

Population: | 131,269,860 (July 2001 est.)

Age structure: | 0-14 years: 35.04% (male 23,550,607; female 22,451,006) 15-64 years: 61.6% (male 41,432,123; female 39,434,633) 65 years and over: 3.36% (male 2,389,639; female 2,011,852) (2001 est.)

Population growth rate: | 1.59% (2001 est.)

Birth rate: | 25.3 births/1,000 population (2001 est.)

Death rate: | 8.6 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.)

Net migration rate: | -0.76 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)

Sex ratio: | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.19 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2001 est.)

Infant mortality rate: | 69.85 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.)

Life expectancy at birth: | total population: 60.54 years male: 60.74 years female: 60.33 years (2001 est.)

Total fertility rate: | 2.78 children born/woman (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: | 0.02% (1999 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: | 13,000 (1999 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths: | 1,000 (1999 est.)

Nationality: | noun: Bangladeshi(s) adjective: Bangladeshi

Ethnic groups: | Bengali 98%, tribal groups, non-Bengali Muslims (1998)

Religions: | Muslim 83%, Hindu 16%, other 1% (1998)

Languages: | Bangla (official, also known as Bengali), English

Literacy: | definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 56% male: 63% female: 49% (2000 est.)

Bangladesh | Government | Top of Page

Country name: | conventional long form: People's Republic of Bangladesh conventional short form: Bangladesh former: East Pakistan

Government type: | parliamentary democracy

Capital: | Dhaka

Administrative divisions: | 5 divisions; Barisal, Chittagong, Dhaka, Khulna, Rajshahi; note - there may be one additional division named Sylhet

Independence: | 16 December 1971 (from West Pakistan); note - 26 March 1971 is the date of independence from West Pakistan, 16 December 1971 is known as Victory Day and commemorates the official creation of the state of Bangladesh

National holiday: | Independence Day, 26 March (1971); note - 26 March 1971 is the date of independence from West Pakistan, 16 December 1971 is Victory Day and commemorates the official creation of the state of Bangladesh

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

Suffrage: | 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch: | chief of state: President Shahabuddin AHMED (since 9 October 1996); note - the president's duties are normally ceremonial, but with the 13th amendment to the constitution ("Caretaker Government Amendment"), the president's role becomes significant at times when Parliament is dissolved and a caretaker government is installed - at presidential direction - to supervise the elections head of government: Prime Minister Sheikh HASINA (since 13 July 1996) cabinet: Cabinet selected by the prime minister and appointed by the president elections: president elected by National Parliament for a five-year term; election last held 24 July 1996 (next to be held by NA October 2001); following legislative elections, the leader of the party that wins the most seats is usually appointed prime minister by the president election results: Shahabuddin AHMED elected president without opposition; percent of National Parliament vote - NA%

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) elections: last held 12 June 1996 (next to be held before 13 October 2001) election results: percent of vote by party - AL 33.87%, BNP 30.87%; seats by party - AL 178, BNP 113, JP 33, JI 3, other 3; note - the elections of 12 June 1996 brought to power an Awami League government for the first time in twenty-one years; held under a neutral, caretaker administration, the elections were characterized by a peaceful, orderly process and massive voter turnout, ending a bitter two-year impasse between the former BNP and opposition parties that had paralyzed National Parliament and led to widespread street violence

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]; Bangladesh Communist Party or BCP [Saifuddin Ahmed MANIK]; Bangladesh Nationalist Party or BNP [Khaleda ZIAur Rahman]; Islami Oikya Jote or IOJ [Azizol HAQ]; Jamaat-E-Islami or JI [Motiur Rahman NIZAMI]; Jatiya Party or JP [Hussain Mohammad ERSHAD]

Political pressure groups and leaders: | NA

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, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNTAET, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO

Diplomatic representation in the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador-designate A. Tariq KARIM chancery: 3510 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 244-0183 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles and New York

Diplomatic representation from the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador Mary Ann PETERS embassy: Road 27, House 110, Banani, Dhaka mailing address: G. P. O. Box 323, Dhaka 1000 telephone: [880] (2) 8824700 through 8824722 FAX: [880] (2) 8823744

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

Bangladesh | Economy | Top of Page

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. Although more than half of GDP is generated through the service sector, nearly two-thirds of Bangladeshis are employed in the agriculture sector, with rice as the single most important product. Major impediments to growth include frequent cyclones and floods, inefficient state-owned enterprises, inadequate port facilities, a rapidly growing labor force that cannot be absorbed by agriculture, delays in exploiting energy resources (natural gas), insufficient power supplies, and slow implementation of economic reforms. Reform is stalled in many instances by political infighting and corruption at all levels of government. Even so, Prime Minister Sheikh HASINA's Awami League government has made some headway improving the climate for foreign investors and liberalizing the capital markets. Progress on other economic reforms has been halting because of opposition from the bureaucracy, public sector unions, and other vested interest groups.

GDP: | purchasing power parity - $203 billion (2000 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: | 5.3% (2000 est.)

GDP - per capita: | purchasing power parity - $1,570 (2000 est.)

GDP - composition by sector: | agriculture: 30% industry: 18% services: 52% (2000 est.)

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

Household income or consumption by percentage share: | lowest 10%: 3.9% highest 10%: 28.6% (1995-96 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): | 5.8% (2000 est.)

Labor force: | 64.1 million (1998) note: extensive export of labor to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE, Oman, Qatar, and Malaysia; workers' remittances estimated at $1.71 billion in 1998-99

Labor force - by occupation: | agriculture 63%, services 26%, industry 11% (FY95/96)

Unemployment rate: | 35.2% (1996)

Budget: | revenues: $4.9 billion expenditures: $6.8 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY99/00 est.)

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

Industrial production growth rate: | 6.1% (2000 est.)

Electricity - production: | 12.06 billion kWh (1999)

Electricity - production by source: | fossil fuel: 93.7% hydro: 6.3% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999)

Electricity - consumption: | 11.216 billion kWh (1999)

Electricity - exports: | 0 kWh (1999)

Electricity - imports: | 0 kWh (1999)

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

Exports: | $5.9 billion (2000)

Exports - commodities: | garments, jute and jute goods, leather, frozen fish and seafood

Exports - partners: | US 31.2%, Germany 9.95%, UK 8.06%, France 5.82%, Italy 4.42% (1999)

Imports: | $8.1 billion (2000)

Imports - commodities: | machinery and equipment, chemicals, iron and steel, textiles, raw cotton, food, crude oil and petroleum products, cement

Imports - partners: | India 12.2%, Singapore 7.8%, Japan 6.7%, China 6.4%, US 5.3% (1999)

Debt - external: | $17 billion (2000)

Economic aid - recipient: | $1.575 billion (2000 est.)

Currency: | taka (BDT)

Currency code: | BDT

Exchange rates: | taka per US dollar - 54.000 (January 2001), 52.142 (2000), 49.085 (1999), 46.906 (1998), 43.892 (1997), 41.794 (1996)

Fiscal year: | 1 July - 30 June

Bangladesh | Communications | Top of Page

Telephones - main lines in use: | 500,000 (2000)

Telephones - mobile cellular: | 283,000 (2000)

Telephone system: | general assessment: totally inadequate for a modern country domestic: modernizing; introducing digital systems; trunk systems include VHF and UHF microwave radio relay links, and some fiber-optic cable in cities international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean); international radiotelephone communications and landline service to neighboring countries (2000)

Radio broadcast stations: | AM 12, FM 12, shortwave 2 (1999)

Radios: | 6.15 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations: | 15 (1999)

Televisions: | 770,000 (1997)

Internet country code: | .bd

Internet Service Providers (ISPs): | 10 (2000)

Internet users: | 30,000 (2000)

Bangladesh | Transportation | Top of Page

Railways: | total: 2,745 km broad gauge: 923 km 1.676-m gauge narrow gauge: 1,822 km 1.000-m gauge (2000)

Highways: | total: 201,182 km paved: 19,112 km unpaved: 182,070 km (1997)

Waterways: | up to 8,046 km depending on season note: includes 3,058 km main cargo routes

Pipelines: | natural gas 1,250 km

Ports and harbors: | Chittagong, Dhaka, Mongla Port, Narayanganj (2001)

Merchant marine: | total: 35 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 268,566 GRT/375,110 DWT ships by type: bulk 2, cargo 25, container 3, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 2 (2000 est.)

Airports: | 18 (2000 est.)

Airports - with paved runways: | total: 15 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 5 (2000 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways: | total: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.)

Bangladesh | Military | Top of Page

Military branches: | Army, Navy, Coast Guard, Air Force, paramilitary forces (includes Bangladesh Rifles, Bangladesh Ansars, Village Defense Parties, National Cadet Corps), Armed Police battalions

Military manpower - availability: | males age 15-49: 36,005,553 (2001 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service: | males age 15-49: 21,362,279 (2001 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure: | $559 million (FY96/97)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP: | 1.8% (FY96/97)

Bangladesh | Transnational Issues | Top of Page

Disputes - international: | a portion of the boundary with India is indefinite; exchange of 151 enclaves along border with India subject to ratification by Indian parliament; dispute with India over South Talpatty/New Moore Island

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