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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
references: Asia
Area:
total: 144,000 sq km
land: 133,910 sq km
water: 10,090 sq k
Cland
boundaries:
total: 4,246 km
border countries: Burma 193 km, India 4,053 kmoastline:
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; 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
extremes:
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Keokradong 1,230 m
Natural
resources: natural gas, arable land, timber
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
flooded during the summer monsoon season
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
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
People
Population:
127,117,967 (July 1999 est.)
Age
structure:
0-14 years: 38% (male 24,516,722; female 23,346,904)
15-64 years: 59% (male 38,441,064; female 36,586,743)
65 years and over: 3% (male 2,303,613; female 1,922,921)
(1999 est.)
Population
growth rate: 1.59% (1999 est.)
Birth
rate: 25.2 births/1,000 population (1999 est.)
Death
rate: 8.5 deaths/1,000 population (1999 est.)
Net
migration rate: -0.79 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1999
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: 1.2 male(s)/female
total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (1999 est.)
Infant
mortality rate: 69.68 deaths/1,000 live births (1999
est.)
Life
expectancy at birth:
total population: 60.6 years
male: 60.73 years
female: 60.46 years (1999 est.)
Total
fertility rate: 2.86 children born/woman (1999 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Bangladeshi(s)
adjective: Bangladesh
Ethnic
groups: Bengali 98%, Biharis 250,000, tribals less than
1 million
Religions:
Muslim 88.3%, Hindu 10.5%, other 1.2%
Languages:
Bangla (official), English
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 38.1%
male: 49.4%
female: 26.1% (1995 est.)
Government
Country
name:
conventional long form: People's Republic of Bangladesh
conventional short form: Bangladesh
former: East Pakistan
Data
code: BG
Government
type: republic
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 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
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 Wajed (since
23 June 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 NA 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
2, election still to be held 1;
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: Bangladesh Nationalist Party or BNP; Awami
League or AL; Jatiyo Party or JP; Jamaat-E-Islami or JI;
Bangladesh Communist Party or BCP
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, MONUA,
NAM, OIC, OPCW, SAARC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO,
UNIKOM, UNMIBH, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNOMIL, UNPREDEP,
UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
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
Economy
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.
Severe floods, lasting from July to October 1998, endangered
the livelihoods of more than 20 million people. Foodgrain
production fell by 4 million tons, forcing Dhaka to triple
its normal foodgrain imports and placing severe pressure
on Bangladesh's balance of payments. The floods 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.
GDP:
purchasing power parity-$175.5 billion (1998 est.)
GDP-real
growth rate: 4% (1998 est.)
GDP-per
capita: purchasing power parity-$1,380 (1998 est.)
GDP-composition
by sector:
agriculture: 30%
industry: 17%
services: 53% (1997)
Population
below poverty line: 35.6% (1995-96 est.)
Household
income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 4.1%
highest 10%: 23.7% (1992)
Inflation
rate (consumer prices): 7% (1998)
Labor
force: 56 million
note: extensive export of labor to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait,
UAE, and Oman (1996)
Labor
force-by occupation: agriculture 65%, services 25%,
industry and mining 10% (1996)
Unemployment
rate: 35.2% (1996)
Budget:
revenues: $3.8 billion
expenditures: $5.5 billion, including capital expenditures
of $NA (1997)
Industries:
jute manufacturing, cotton textiles, food processing, steel,
fertilizer
Industrial
production growth rate: 3.6% (1997)
Electricity-production:
11.5 billion kWh (1997)
Electricity-production
by source:
fossil fuel: 97.35%
hydro: 2.65%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1996)
Electricity-consumption:
11.3 billion kWh (1996)
Electricity-exports:
0 kWh (1996)
Electricity-imports:
0 kWh (1996)
Agriculture-products:
rice, jute, tea, wheat, sugarcane, potatoes; beef, milk,
poultry
Exports:
$4.4 billion (1997)
Exports-commodities:
garments, jute and jute goods, leather, frozen fish and
seafood
Exports-partners:
Western Europe 42%, US 30%, Hong Kong 4%, Japan 3% (FY95/96
est.)
Imports:
$7.1 billion (1997)
Imports-commodities:
capital goods, textiles, food, petroleum products
Imports-partners:
India 21%, China 10%, Western Europe 8%, Hong Kong 7%, Singapore
6% (FY95/96 est.)
Debt-external:
$16.7 billion (1997)
Economic
aid-recipient: $1.475 billion (FY96/97)
Currency:
1 taka (Tk) = 100 poisha
Exchange
rates: taka (Tk) per US$1-48.500 (January 1999), 46.906
(1998), 43.892 (1997), 41.794 (1996), 40.278 (1995), 40.212
(1994)
Fiscal
year: 1 July-30 June
Communications
Telephones:
249,800 (1994 est.)
Telephone
system:
domestic: poor domestic telephone service international:
satellite earth stations-2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean); international
radiotelephone communications and landline service to neighboring
countries
Radio
broadcast stations: AM 12, FM 12, shortwave 2 (one of
Bangladesh's two shortwave stations, Bangladesh Betar or
Radio Bangladesh, transmits its programs to the world in
six languages on four frequencies) (1998)
Radios:
NA
Television
broadcast stations: 11 (1997)
Televisions:
350,000 (1993 est.)
Transportation
Railways:
total: 2,745 km
broad gauge: 923 km 1.676-m gauge
narrow gauge: 1,822 km 1.000-m gauge (1998 est.)
Highways:
total: 204,022 km
paved: 25,095 km
unpaved: 178,927 km (1996 est.)
Waterways:
5,150-8,046 km navigable waterways (includes 2,575-3,058
km main cargo routes)
Pipelines:
natural gas 1,220 km
Ports
and harbors: Chittagong, Dhaka, Mongla Port
Merchant
marine:
total: 40 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 315,855 GRT/453,002
DWT ships by type: bulk 2, cargo 33, oil tanker 2, refrigerated
cargo 1, roll-on/roll-off cargo 2 (1998 est.)
Airports:
16 (1998 est.)
Airports-with
paved runways:
total: 15
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4
914 to 1,523 m: 1
under 914 m: 7 (1998 est.)
Airports-with
unpaved runways:
total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (1998 est.)
Transnational Issues
Disputes-international:
a portion of the boundary with India is indefinite; dispute
with India over South Talpatty/New Moore Island
Illicit
drugs: transit country for illegal drugs produced in
neighboring countries
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