|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Background:- Europeans began to set up trading posts in the area of Bangladesh in the 16th century;
eventually the British came to dominate the region and it became part of British
India. In 1947, West Pakistan and East Bengal (both primarily Muslim) separated
from India (largely Hindu) and jointly became the new country of Pakistan.
East Bengal became East Pakistan in 1955, but the awkward arrangement of a two-part country with its territorial units separated by 1,600 km left the Bengalis
marginalized and dissatisfied. East Pakistan seceded from its union with West
Pakistan in 1971 and was renamed Bangladesh. A military-backed, emergency
caretaker regime suspended parliamentary elections planned for January 2007 in an effort to reform the political system and root out corruption.
In contrast to the strikes and violent street rallies that had marked Bangladeshi
politics in previous years, the parliamentary elections finally held in late December
2008 were mostly peaceful and Sheikh HASINA Wajed was elected prime minister. About a third of this extremely poor country floods annually during the
monsoon rainy season, hampering economic development. | |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Southern Asia, bordering the Bay of Bengal, between Burma and India |
|
|
|
|
24 00 N, 90 00 E |
|
|
|
|
total: 143,998 sq km country comparison to the world: 94 land: 130,168 sq km water: 13,830 sq km |
|
|
|
|
slightly smaller than Iowa |
|
|
|
|
total: 4,246 km border countries: Burma 193 km, India 4,053 km |
|
|
|
|
580 km |
|
|
|
|
territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 18 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: up to the outer limits of the continental margin |
|
|
tropical; mild winter (October to March); hot, humid summer (March to June); humid,
warm rainy monsoon (June to October) |
|
|
|
|
mostly flat alluvial plain; hilly in southeast |
|
|
|
|
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Keokradong 1,230 m |
|
|
|
|
natural gas, arable land, timber, coal |
|
|
|
|
arable land: 55.39% permanent crops: 3.08% other: 41.53% (2005) |
|
|
|
|
47,250 sq km (2003) |
|
|
|
|
1,210.6 cu km (1999) |
|
|
|
|
total: 79.4 cu km/yr (3%/1%/96%) per capita: 560 cu m/yr (2000) |
|
|
|
|
droughts; cyclones; much of the country routinely inundated during the summer
monsoon season |
|
|
|
|
many people are landless and forced to live on and cultivate flood-prone land; waterborne
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 |
|
|
|
|
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification,
Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes,
Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
|
|
|
|
most of the country is situated on deltas of large rivers flowing from the Himalayas:
the Ganges unites with the Jamuna (main channel of the Brahmaputra) and later joins
the Meghna to eventually empty into the Bay of Bengal |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
158,570,535 (July 2011 est.) country comparison to the world: 7 |
|
|
|
|
0-14 years: 34.3% (male 27,551,594/female 26,776,647) 15-64 years: 61.1% (male 45,956,431/female 50,891,519) 65 years and over: 4.7% (male 3,616,225/female 3,778,119) (2011 est.) |
|
|
|
|
total: 23.3 years male: 22.7 years female: 23.7 years (2011 est.) |
|
|
|
|
1.566% (2011 est.) country comparison to the world: 76 |
|
|
|
|
22.98 births/1,000 population (2011 est.) country comparison to the world: 72 |
|
|
|
|
5.75 deaths/1,000 population (July 2011 est.) country comparison to the world: 172 |
|
|
|
|
-1.57 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2011 est.) country comparison to the world: 158 |
|
|
|
|
urban population: 28% of total population (2010) rate of urbanization: 3.1% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.) |
|
|
|
|
DHAKA (capital) 14.251 million; Chittagong 4.816 million; Khulna 1.636 million;
Rajshahi 853,000 (2009) |
|
|
|
|
at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.89 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.93 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2011 est.) |
|
|
|
|
total: 50.73 deaths/1,000 live births country comparison to the world: 47 male: 53.23 deaths/1,000 live births female: 48.13 deaths/1,000 live births (2011 est.) |
|
|
|
|
total population: 69.75 years country comparison to the world: 148 male: 67.93 years female: 71.65 years (2011 est.) |
|
|
|
|
2.6 children born/woman (2011 est.) country comparison to the world: 81 |
|
|
|
|
less than 0.1% (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 117 |
|
|
|
|
6,300 (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 117 |
|
|
|
|
fewer than 200 (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 114 |
|
|
|
|
degree of risk: high food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A and E, and
typhoid fever vectorborne diseases: dengue fever and malaria are high risks in some
locations water contact disease: leptospirosis animal contact disease: rabies note: highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza has been identified in this country;
it poses a negligible risk with extremely rare cases possible among US citizens
who have close contact with birds (2009) |
|
|
|
|
noun: Bangladeshi(s) adjective: Bangladeshi |
|
|
|
|
Bengali 98%, other 2% (includes tribal groups, non-Bengali Muslims) (1998) |
|
|
|
|
Muslim 89.5%, Hindu 9.6%, other 0.9% (2004) |
|
|
|
|
Bangla (official, also known as Bengali), English |
|
|
|
|
definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 47.9% male: 54% female: 41.4% (2001 Census) |
|
|
|
|
total: 8 years male: 8 years female: 8 years (2007) |
|
|
|
|
2.4% of GDP (2008) country comparison to the world: 149 |
|
|
|
|
|
conventional long form: People's Republic of Bangladesh conventional short form: Bangladesh local long form: Gana Prajatantri Bangladesh local short form: former: East Bengal, East Pakistan |
|
|
|
|
parliamentary democracy |
|
|
|
|
name: Dhaka geographic coordinates: 23 43 N, 90 24 E time difference: UTC+6 (11 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
|
|
|
|
7 divisions; Barisal, Chittagong, Dhaka, Khulna, Rajshahi, Rangpur, Sylhet |
|
|
|
|
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 |
|
|
|
|
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 |
|
|
|
|
4 November 1972; effective 16 December 1972; suspended following coup of 24 March
1982; restored 10 November 1986; amended many times |
|
|
|
|
based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
|
|
|
|
18 years of age; universal |
|
|
|
|
chief of state: President Zillur RAHMAN (since 12 February 2009) head of government: Prime Minister Sheikh HASINA Wajed (since 6 January 2009) cabinet: Cabinet selected by the prime minister and appointed by the president elections: president elected by National Parliament for a five-year term (eligible for a
second term); last election held on 11 February 2009 (next to be held in 2014) election results: Zillur RAHMAN declared president-elect by the Election Commission on
11 February 2009 (sworn in on 12 February); he ran unopposed as president; percent of National Parliament vote - NA |
|
|
|
|
unicameral National Parliament or Jatiya Sangsad; 300 seats (45 reserved for women)
elected by popular vote from single territorial constituencies; members serve five-year terms elections: last held on 29 December 2008 (next to be held in 2013) election results: percent of vote by party - AL 49%, BNP 33.2%, JP 7%, JIB 4.6%, other 6.2%; seats by party - AL 230, BNP 30, JP 27, JIB 2, other 11 |
|
|
|
|
Supreme Court (the chief justices and other judges are appointed by the president) |
|
|
|
|
Awami League or AL [Sheikh HASINA]; Communist Party of Bangladesh or CPB
[Manjurul A.KHAN]; Bangladesh Nationalist Party or BNP [Khaleda ZIA]; Bikalpa
Dhara Bangladesh or BDB [Badrudozza CHOWDHURY]; Islami Oikya Jote or IOJ
[multiple leaders]; Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh or JIB [Matiur Rahman NIZAMI];
Jatiya Party or JP (Ershad faction) [Hussain Mohammad ERSHAD]; Liberal
Democratic Party or LDP [Oli AHMED] |
|
|
|
|
Advocacy to End Gender-based Violence through the MoWCA (Ministry of Women's and Children's Affairs) other: environmentalists; Islamist groups; religious leaders; teachers; union leaders |
|
|
|
|
ADB, ARF, BIMSTEC, C, CICA (observer), CP, D-8, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD,
ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF,
IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINURSO,
MONUSCO, NAM, OIC, OPCW, SAARC, SACEP, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMIL, UNMIS,
UNMIT, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
|
|
|
|
chief of mission: Ambassador Akramul QADER chancery: 3510 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 244-0183 FAX: [1] (202) 244-7830/2771 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles, New York |
|
|
|
|
chief of mission: Ambassador James F. MORIARTY embassy: Madani Avenue, Baridhara, Dhaka 1212 mailing address: G. P. O. Box 323, Dhaka 1000 telephone: [880] (2) 885-5500 FAX: [880] (2) 882-3744 |
|
|
|
|
green field with a large red disk shifted slightly to the hoist side of center; the red disk
represents the rising sun and the sacrifice to achieve independence; the green field
symbolizes the lush vegetation of Bangladesh. |
|
|
|
|
name: "Amar Shonar Bangla" (My Golden Bengal) lyrics/music: Rabindranath TAGORE note: adopted 1971; Rabindranath TAGORE, a Nobel laureate, also wrote India's
national anthem |
|
|
|
|
|
The economy has grown 5-6% per year since 1996 despite political instability, poor
infrastructure,corruption, insufficient power supplies, and slow implementation of
economic reforms. Bangladesh remains a poor, overpopulated, and inefficiently-
governednation. Although more than half of GDP is generated through the service
sector, 45% of Bangladeshisare employed in the agriculture sector, with rice as the
single-most-important product. Bangladesh's growth was resilient during the 2008-09 global financial crisis a nd recession. Garment exports, totaling $12.3 billion in FY09 and remittances from overseas Bangladeshis,totaling $11 billion in FY10, accounted for almost 25% of GDP. |
|
|
|
|
$259.3 billion (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 47 $244.6 billion (2009 est.) $231.4 billion (2008 est.) note: data are in 2010 US dollars |
|
|
|
|
$100.1 billion (2010 est.) |
|
|
|
|
6% (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 44 5.7% (2009 est.) 6% (2008 est.) |
|
|
|
|
$1,700 (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 195 $1,600 (2009 est.) $1,500 (2008 est.) note: data are in 2010 US dollars |
|
|
|
|
agriculture: 18.4% industry: 28.7% services: 52.9% (2010 est.) |
|
|
|
|
73.87 million country comparison to the world: 8 note: extensive export of labor to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE, Oman, Qatar, and
Malaysia; workers' remittances were $10.9 billion in FY09/10 (2010 est.) |
|
|
|
|
agriculture: 45% industry: 30% services: 25% (2008) |
|
|
|
|
4.8% (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 44 5.1% (2009 est.) note: about 40% of the population is underemployed; many participants in the
labor force work only a few hours a week, at low wages |
|
|
|
|
40% (2010 est.) |
|
|
|
|
lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: 26.6% (2008 est.) |
|
|
|
|
33.2 (2005) country comparison to the world: 95 33.6 (1996) |
|
|
|
|
24.4% of GDP (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 48 |
|
|
|
|
revenues: $11.43 billion expenditures: $15.9 billion (2010 est.) |
|
|
|
|
39.3% of GDP (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 75 39.7% of GDP (2009 est.) |
|
|
|
|
8.1% (2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 185 5.4% (2009 est.) |
|
|
|
|
5% (31 October 2010) country comparison to the world: 81 5% (31 December 2008) |
|
|
|
|
11.18% (30 September 2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 46 14.6% (31 December 2009 est.) |
|
|
|
|
$13.98 billion (31 December 2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 67 $10.92 billion (31 December 2009 est.) |
|
|
|
|
$57.21 billion (31 December 2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 64 $63.03 billion (31 December 2009) |
|
|
|
|
$62.2 billion (31 December 2010 est.) country comparison to the world: 60 $53.77 billion (31 December 2009 est.) |
|
|
|
|
$7.068 billion (31 December 2009) country comparison to the world: 74 $6.671 billion (31 December 2008) $6.793 billion (31 December 2007) |
|
|
|
|
rice, jute, tea, wheat, sugarcane, potatoes, tobacco, pulses, oilseeds, spices, fruit;
beef, milk, poultry |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
