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Bangladesh Index
For the vast majority of Bangladeshis, politics revolves around
the institutions of the village or the union of neighboring
villages. Traditionally, the main base for political influence in
rural areas has been landownership. During the British colonial
period, zamindars controlled huge estates as if they were their
personal kingdoms
(see The British Raj
, ch. 1). With the abolition
of zamindar tenure in 1950, a new local elite of rich Muslim
peasants developed. The members of the new elite owned far less
land than the zamindars had once possessed, but they were able to
feed their families well, sell surplus produce, send their children
to school, and form new links with the bureaucracy of East Pakistan
and later Bangladesh. Amid the large majority of poor and generally
illiterate peasants, well-to-do farmers formed a new rural
leadership that dominated local affairs.
Village society is often divided into a number of factions that
follow the lines of kinship
(see Rural Society
, ch. 2). At the
center of each faction is a family that owns more land than most of
the other villagers. In the colonial and Pakistani periods, local
leaders were old men, but the trend since independence is for
younger men to head factions as well. The heart of the local
elder's authority is his control over land and the ability to
provide land or employment to poorer villagers, who are often his
kin. Land control may be an ancient prerogative, stretching back to
the zamindars, or it may be the result of gradual purchases since
independence. A village may have only one faction, but typically
there will be several factions within the village, each competing
for influence over villagers and struggling for resources from
local administrative and development offices.
The leaders of local factions exercise their influence in
village courts and as managers of village affairs with other
administrative units. The traditional means for resolving local
disputes is through the village court, which comprises leaders of
village factions and other members of union councils. Throughout
Bangladesh, village courts address the vast majority of disputes,
but it is rare for the courts to decide in favor of a poor peasant
over a rich peasant, or for the weaker faction over the stronger
(see Judiciary
, this ch.). The relative security of village leaders
makes it possible for some of their children to attend secondary
schools, or even colleges or universities; some factions also base
much of their authority on their knowledge of sharia. Education is
much esteemed in Bangladesh, and degrees are tickets to highly
prized government positions or to urban jobs that give the involved
families a cosmopolitan outlook. These contacts outside the village
include necessary links with bureaucratic institutions that
ultimately bring economic aid and patronage jobs to the village. In
these ways, the factional leadership of the village provides vital
links to the development process, while retaining its traditional
position at the top of village society.
Local leaders who control land, people, and education also tend
to control the disbursement of rural credit and development funds
through their positions in union and subdistrict government.
Studies of the leadership of union council members have
demonstrated this dominance of local elites over rural political
and economic life. Among the chairmen of union councils in 1984,
over 60 percent owned more than 3 hectares of land, with an average
of almost 8 hectares. Sixty percent were primarily engaged in
agriculture, 30 percent were businessmen, and 75 percent had a
marketable surplus each year. Eighty percent had incomes greater
than TK40,000 (for value of the
taka--see Glossary)
per year, and
50 percent had incomes greater than Tk100,000. Almost all union
council leaders took part in village courts as judges, and most
were heavily involved in the support of local mosques and
madrasa (religious school attached to a mosque) committees
(see Religious Education
, ch. 2). For victorious campaigns for
union council chairmanships, winners spent an average of more than
Tk1 million in 1978; most of them mobilized at least 25 people for
their campaigns, and 20 percent mobilized between 200 and 2,000
supporters. In 1978 only 7 percent of the chairmen of union
councils had college degrees, but the percentage of graduates had
increased to 50 percent by 1984.
Political elites were more varied in urban environments. The
metropolitan areas of Dhaka, Chittagong, Khulna, and Rajshahi had
large numbers of conflicting constituencies and political machines
linked to national parties. In smaller cities and towns serving as
district and subdistrict administrative centers, some leaders
emerged directly from the local social system, whereas others
became politically established as a result of their professional
activities. Members of the government bureaucracy and the military,
for example, form an important part of a district town's
leadership, but they typically have roots, and connections to land,
in other parts of the country. Members of the permanent local
elite, such as businessmen, union leaders, lawyers, or religious
figures, are more concerned with strictly local issues and have
strong support from family networks stretching into the nearby
countryside. One of the outstanding characteristics of the urban
leadership is its relatively short history. In the late 1980s, it
was clear that many had emerged from middle-class or rich peasant
backgrounds since 1947 or, in many cases, since 1971. Most retained
close links with their rural relatives, either locally or
elsewhere. Urban elites included professional politicians of
national parties, and the entire social group that made up the
urban leadership--military, professional, administrative,
religious, and business personnel--interacted in a hotbed of
national politics.
Data as of September 1988
Local Elites
For the vast majority of Bangladeshis, politics revolves around
the institutions of the village or the union of neighboring
villages. Traditionally, the main base for political influence in
rural areas has been landownership. During the British colonial
period, zamindars controlled huge estates as if they were their
personal kingdoms
(see The British Raj
, ch. 1). With the abolition
of zamindar tenure in 1950, a new local elite of rich Muslim
peasants developed. The members of the new elite owned far less
land than the zamindars had once possessed, but they were able to
feed their families well, sell surplus produce, send their children
to school, and form new links with the bureaucracy of East Pakistan
and later Bangladesh. Amid the large majority of poor and generally
illiterate peasants, well-to-do farmers formed a new rural
leadership that dominated local affairs.
Village society is often divided into a number of factions that
follow the lines of kinship
(see Rural Society
, ch. 2). At the
center of each faction is a family that owns more land than most of
the other villagers. In the colonial and Pakistani periods, local
leaders were old men, but the trend since independence is for
younger men to head factions as well. The heart of the local
elder's authority is his control over land and the ability to
provide land or employment to poorer villagers, who are often his
kin. Land control may be an ancient prerogative, stretching back to
the zamindars, or it may be the result of gradual purchases since
independence. A village may have only one faction, but typically
there will be several factions within the village, each competing
for influence over villagers and struggling for resources from
local administrative and development offices.
The leaders of local factions exercise their influence in
village courts and as managers of village affairs with other
administrative units. The traditional means for resolving local
disputes is through the village court, which comprises leaders of
village factions and other members of union councils. Throughout
Bangladesh, village courts address the vast majority of disputes,
but it is rare for the courts to decide in favor of a poor peasant
over a rich peasant, or for the weaker faction over the stronger
(see Judiciary
, this ch.). The relative security of village leaders
makes it possible for some of their children to attend secondary
schools, or even colleges or universities; some factions also base
much of their authority on their knowledge of sharia. Education is
much esteemed in Bangladesh, and degrees are tickets to highly
prized government positions or to urban jobs that give the involved
families a cosmopolitan outlook. These contacts outside the village
include necessary links with bureaucratic institutions that
ultimately bring economic aid and patronage jobs to the village. In
these ways, the factional leadership of the village provides vital
links to the development process, while retaining its traditional
position at the top of village society.
Local leaders who control land, people, and education also tend
to control the disbursement of rural credit and development funds
through their positions in union and subdistrict government.
Studies of the leadership of union council members have
demonstrated this dominance of local elites over rural political
and economic life. Among the chairmen of union councils in 1984,
over 60 percent owned more than 3 hectares of land, with an average
of almost 8 hectares. Sixty percent were primarily engaged in
agriculture, 30 percent were businessmen, and 75 percent had a
marketable surplus each year. Eighty percent had incomes greater
than TK40,000 (for value of the
taka--see Glossary)
per year, and
50 percent had incomes greater than Tk100,000. Almost all union
council leaders took part in village courts as judges, and most
were heavily involved in the support of local mosques and
madrasa (religious school attached to a mosque) committees
(see Religious Education
, ch. 2). For victorious campaigns for
union council chairmanships, winners spent an average of more than
Tk1 million in 1978; most of them mobilized at least 25 people for
their campaigns, and 20 percent mobilized between 200 and 2,000
supporters. In 1978 only 7 percent of the chairmen of union
councils had college degrees, but the percentage of graduates had
increased to 50 percent by 1984.
Political elites were more varied in urban environments. The
metropolitan areas of Dhaka, Chittagong, Khulna, and Rajshahi had
large numbers of conflicting constituencies and political machines
linked to national parties. In smaller cities and towns serving as
district and subdistrict administrative centers, some leaders
emerged directly from the local social system, whereas others
became politically established as a result of their professional
activities. Members of the government bureaucracy and the military,
for example, form an important part of a district town's
leadership, but they typically have roots, and connections to land,
in other parts of the country. Members of the permanent local
elite, such as businessmen, union leaders, lawyers, or religious
figures, are more concerned with strictly local issues and have
strong support from family networks stretching into the nearby
countryside. One of the outstanding characteristics of the urban
leadership is its relatively short history. In the late 1980s, it
was clear that many had emerged from middle-class or rich peasant
backgrounds since 1947 or, in many cases, since 1971. Most retained
close links with their rural relatives, either locally or
elsewhere. Urban elites included professional politicians of
national parties, and the entire social group that made up the
urban leadership--military, professional, administrative,
religious, and business personnel--interacted in a hotbed of
national politics.
Data as of September 1988
- Bangladesh-Government Budget Process
- Bangladesh-Rural Society
- Bangladesh-Inland Waterways and Ports TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATIONS
- Bangladesh-Biofuels
- Bangladesh-Telecommunications
- Bangladesh-Aid Dependence
- Bangladesh-Industrial Crops
- Bangladesh-Women in Politics
- Bangladesh-The Zia Regime and Its Aftermath, 1977-82
- Bangladesh-United States
- Bangladesh-Population Control
- Bangladesh-Constitution STRUCTURE OF GOVERNMENT
- Bangladesh-Social Classes and Stratification
- Bangladesh-Health Care Facilities
- Bangladesh-Export Sectors FOREIGN TRADE
- Bangladesh-Awami League
- Bangladesh-THE MILITARY IN THE LATE 1980s
- Bangladesh-Foreign Governments and Private Donors
- Bangladesh-Defense Spending
- Bangladesh-ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
- Bangladesh-Legislature
- Bangladesh-Reappraisal of British Policy
- Bangladesh-Violence and Crime PUBLIC ORDER AND INTERNAL SECURITY
- Bangladesh-Development Budget
- Bangladesh-Education Planning and Policy
- Bangladesh-Wheat
- Bangladesh-BANGLADESH
- Bangladesh-The "Revolution" of Ayub Khan, 1958-66
- Bangladesh-Islam
- Bangladesh-Economic Reconstruction after Independence
- Bangladesh-THE NATIONALIST MOVEMENT AND THE RISE OF MUSLIM CONSCIOUSNESS, 1857-1947
- Bangladesh-Hinduism
- Bangladesh-Transition to Nationhood, 1947-58 PAKISTAN PERIOD, 1947-71
- Bangladesh-Bangladesh Rifles
- Bangladesh-Navy
- Bangladesh-Colonial Origins ARMED FORCES AND SOCIETY
- Bangladesh-Criminal Justice
- Bangladesh-PROBLEMS AND PROSPECTS
- Bangladesh-Tourism
- Bangladesh-Foreign Acquisitions and Ties
- Bangladesh-Chapter 5 - National Security
- Bangladesh-Foreword
- Bangladesh-United Nations
- Bangladesh-Society
- Bangladesh-Party Politics
- Bangladesh-Postindependence Period
- Bangladesh-The British Raj
- Bangladesh-Recruitment
- Bangladesh-Insurgency in the Chittagong Hills
- Bangladesh-Technological Advances
- Bangladesh-The Land GEOGRAPHY
- Bangladesh-Buddhism
- Bangladesh-Jute
- Bangladesh-Local Elites POLITICAL DYNAMICS
- Bangladesh-Historical Perspective ECONOMIC CONTEXT
- Bangladesh-National Security
- Bangladesh-Economic Policy and Planning MANAGING THE ECONOMY
- Bangladesh-Population Structure and Settlement Patterns POPULATION
- Bangladesh-FOREIGN POLICY
- Bangladesh-Achieving Stability, 1982-83 THE ERSHAD PERIOD
- Bangladesh-Geography
- Bangladesh-Restoration of Military Rule, 1975-77
- Bangladesh-Early Independence Period, 1971-72 BIRTH OF BANGLADESH
- Bangladesh-Islam in Bangladesh
- Bangladesh-Ansars
- Bangladesh-Coal
- Bangladesh-Other Industries
- Bangladesh-Islamic Parties
- Bangladesh-The British Legacy EDUCATION
- Bangladesh-Western Europe, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand
- Bangladesh-Early Settlements EUROPEAN COLONIZATION, 1757-1857
- Bangladesh-The Superpowers
- Bangladesh-Disease and Disease Control
- Bangladesh-Railroads
- Bangladesh-Executive
- Bangladesh-Chapter 3 - The Economy
- Bangladesh-Other Nations
- Bangladesh-Balance and Terms of Trade
- Bangladesh-River Systems
- Bangladesh-Early Developments in Islam
- Bangladesh-Two Nations Concept, 1930-47
- Bangladesh-Education System
- Bangladesh -Country Profile
- Bangladesh-Mission
- Bangladesh-Civil Aviation
- Bangladesh-Council of Ministers
- Bangladesh-Medical Education and Training
- Bangladesh-Police
- Bangladesh-China and Other Asian Nations
- Bangladesh-Transportation and Communications
- Bangladesh-EARLY HISTORY, 1000 B.C.-A.D - 1202
- Bangladesh-Fall of the Bangabandhu, 1972-75
- Bangladesh-Other Export Industries
- Bangladesh-Chapter 2 - The Society and Its Environment
- Bangladesh-Role of English and Arabic in Education
- Bangladesh-A Great Divide in South Asian History THE UPRISING OF 1857
- Bangladesh-Chapter 4 - Government and Politics
- Bangladesh-Bangladesh National Party
- Bangladesh-The Division of Bengal, 1905-12
- Bangladesh-Transition to a New Social Order SOCIAL SYSTEM
- Bangladesh-Pakistan Era
- Bangladesh-Test Case for Development FOREIGN ASSISTANCE
- Bangladesh-Ready-made Garments
- Bangladesh
- Bangladesh-Civil Service
- Bangladesh-AUXILIARY FORCES
- Bangladesh-Alliances
- Bangladesh-Government and Politics
- Bangladesh-More Opposition Pressure
- Bangladesh-Table A - Chronology of Important Events
- Bangladesh-Other Food Crops
- Bangladesh
- Bangladesh-Road Transportation
- Bangladesh-Mineral Development
- Bangladesh-Air Force
- Bangladesh-Traditional Sectors INDUSTRY
- Bangladesh-Leftist Parties
- Bangladesh-Seafood
- Bangladesh-Urban Society
- Bangladesh-Ethnicity and Linguistic Diversity
- Bangladesh-Garments
- Bangladesh
- Bangladesh-Relaxation of Martial Law, 1986-87
- Bangladesh
- Bangladesh-The National Party
- Bangladesh-HEALTH
- Bangladesh-The Islamic World
- Bangladesh-Army THE THREE SERVICES
- Bangladesh-Chapter 1 - Historical Setting
- Bangladesh
- Bangladesh-The Banking System
- Bangladesh-Fisheries
- Bangladesh-The Liberation War
- Bangladesh
- Bangladesh-Local Administration
- Bangladesh-International Organizations
- Bangladesh-Economy
- Bangladesh-The War for Bangladeshi Independence, 1971
- Bangladesh
- Bangladesh-Money and Banking
- Bangladesh-Introduction
- Bangladesh-Family, Household, and Kinship
- Bangladesh-Electric Power
- Bangladesh-Security Environment
- Bangladesh-Christianity
- Bangladesh-Pakistan
- Bangladesh-Joint Ventures and Foreign Investment
- Bangladesh-Religious Education
- Bangladesh-Climate
- Bangladesh-Aid-to-Civil Roles
- Bangladesh-Religion and Society RELIGION
- Bangladesh
- Bangladesh-Food Crops
- Bangladesh-THE MEDIA
- Bangladesh-Bilateral Investment
- Bangladesh-Structure of Agricultural Production AGRICULTURE
- Bangladesh
- Bangladesh-Legal Basis ORGANIZATION OF THE ARMED FORCES
- Bangladesh-PREFACE
- Bangladesh-Judiciary
- Bangladesh-South and Southeast Asia
|
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 reelected prime minister. About a third of this extremely poor country floods annually during the monsoon rainy season, hampering economic development.
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Location | | Southern Asia, bordering the Bay of Bengal, between Burma and India
|
|
Area(sq km) | | total: 143,998 sq km
land: 130,168 sq km
water: 13,830 sq km
|
|
Geographic coordinates | | 24 00 N, 90 00 E
|
|
Land boundaries(km) | | total: 4,246 km
border countries: Burma 193 km, India 4,053 km
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|
Coastline(km) | | 580 km
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|
Climate | | tropical; mild winter (October to March); hot, humid summer (March to June); humid, warm rainy monsoon (June to October)
|
|
Elevation extremes(m) | | lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Keokradong 1,230 m
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Natural resources | | natural gas, arable land, timber, coal
|
|
Land use(%) | | arable land: 55.39%
permanent crops: 3.08%
other: 41.53% (2005)
|
|
Irrigated land(sq km) | | 47,250 sq km (2003)
|
|
Total renewable water resources(cu km) | | 1,210.6 cu km (1999)
|
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Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural) | | total: 79.4 cu km/yr (3%/1%/96%)
per capita: 560 cu m/yr (2000)
|
|
Natural hazards | | droughts; cyclones; much of the country routinely inundated during the summer monsoon season
|
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Environment - current issues | | 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
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Environment - international agreements | | 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
|
|
Geography - note | | 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
|
|
Population | | 156,050,883 (July 2009 est.)
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|
Age structure(%) | | 0-14 years: 34.6% (male 27,065,625/female 26,913,961)
15-64 years: 61.4% (male 45,222,182/female 50,537,052)
65 years and over: 4% (male 3,057,255/female 3,254,808) (2009 est.)
|
|
Median age(years) | | total: 23.3 years
male: 22.9 years
female: 23.5 years (2009 est.)
|
|
Population growth rate(%) | | 1.292% (2009 est.)
|
|
Birth rate(births/1,000 population) | | 24.68 births/1,000 population (2009 est.)
|
|
Death rate(deaths/1,000 population) | | 9.23 deaths/1,000 population (July 2009 est.)
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Net migration rate(migrant(s)/1,000 population) | | -2.53 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2009 est.)
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Urbanization(%) | | urban population: 27% of total population (2008)
rate of urbanization: 3.5% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
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Sex ratio(male(s)/female) | | at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.9 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.94 male(s)/female
total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2009 est.)
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Infant mortality rate(deaths/1,000 live births) | | total: 59.02 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 66.12 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 51.64 deaths/1,000 live births (2009 est.)
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Life expectancy at birth(years) | | total population: 60.25 years
male: 57.57 years
female: 63.03 years (2009 est.)
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Total fertility rate(children born/woman) | | 2.74 children born/woman (2009 est.)
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Nationality | | noun: Bangladeshi(s)
adjective: Bangladeshi
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Ethnic groups(%) | | Bengali 98%, other 2% (includes tribal groups, non-Bengali Muslims) (1998)
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Religions(%) | | Muslim 83%, Hindu 16%, other 1% (1998)
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Languages(%) | | Bangla (official, also known as Bengali), English
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Country name | | conventional long form: People's Republic of Bangladesh
conventional short form: Bangladesh
local long form: Gana Prajatantri Banladesh
local short form: Banladesh
former: East Bengal, East Pakistan
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Government type | | parliamentary democracy
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Capital | | name: Dhaka
geographic coordinates: 23 43 N, 90 24 E
time difference: UTC+6 (11 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
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Administrative divisions | | 6 divisions; Barisal, Chittagong, Dhaka, Khulna, Rajshahi, Sylhet
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Constitution | | 4 November 1972; effective 16 December 1972; suspended following coup of 24 March 1982; restored 10 November 1986; amended many times
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Legal system | | based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
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Suffrage | | 18 years of age; universal
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Executive branch | | 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 scheduled election 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
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Legislative branch | | unicameral National Parliament or Jatiya Sangsad; 300 seats elected by popular vote from single territorial constituencies; members serve five-year terms
elections: last held 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
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Judicial branch | | Supreme Court (the chief justices and other judges are appointed by the president)
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Political pressure groups and leaders | | 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
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International organization participation | | ADB, ARF, BIMSTEC, C, CP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINURCAT, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OPCW, SAARC, SACEP, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNMIT, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
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Flag description | | 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
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Economy - overview | | The economy has grown 5-6% per year since 1996 despite inefficient state-owned enterprises, delays in exploiting natural gas resources, insufficient power supplies, and slow implementation of economic reforms. Bangladesh remains a poor, overpopulated, and inefficiently-governed nation. 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. Garment exports and remittances from Bangladeshis working overseas, mainly in the Middle East and East Asia, fuel economic growth. In 2008 Bangladesh pursued a monetary policy aimed at maintaining high employment, but created higher inflation in the process.
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GDP (purchasing power parity) | | $226.4 billion (2008 est.)
$214 billion (2007 est.)
$201.5 billion (2006 est.)
note: data are in 2008 US dollars
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GDP (official exchange rate) | | $84.2 billion (2008 est.)
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GDP - real growth rate(%) | | 5.8% (2008 est.)
6.2% (2007 est.)
6.4% (2006 est.)
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GDP - per capita (PPP) | | $1,500 (2008 est.)
$1,400 (2007 est.)
$1,300 (2006 est.)
note: data are in 2008 US dollars
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GDP - composition by sector(%) | | agriculture: 19.1%
industry: 28.6%
services: 52.3% (2008 est.)
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Labor force | | 70.86 million
note: extensive export of labor to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE, Oman, Qatar, and Malaysia; workers' remittances estimated at $4.8 billion in 2005-06. (2008 est.)
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Labor force - by occupation(%) | | agriculture: 63%
industry: 11%
services: 26% (FY95/96)
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Unemployment rate(%) | | 2.5% (2008 est.)
2.5% (2007 est.)
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Population below poverty line(%) | | 45% (2004 est.)
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Household income or consumption by percentage share(%) | | lowest 10%: 4.3%
highest 10%: 26.6% (2005)
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Distribution of family income - Gini index | | 33.2 (2005)
33.6 (1996)
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Investment (gross fixed)(% of GDP) | | 24.3% of GDP (2008 est.)
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Budget | | revenues: $8.825 billion
expenditures: $12.54 billion (2008 est.)
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Inflation rate (consumer prices)(%) | | 8.9% (2008 est.)
9.1% (2007 est.)
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Stock of money | | $9.294 billion (31 December 2008)
$8.444 billion (31 December 2007)
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Stock of quasi money | | $37.98 billion (31 December 2008)
$32.35 billion (31 December 2007)
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Stock of domestic credit | | $47.03 billion (31 December 2008)
$40.1 billion (31 December 2007)
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Market value of publicly traded shares | | $6.671 billion (31 December 2008)
$6.793 billion (31 December 2007)
$3.61 billion (31 December 2006)
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Economic aid - recipient | | $1.321 billion (2005)
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Public debt(% of GDP) | | 39.4% of GDP (2008 est.)
43% of GDP (2004 est.)
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Agriculture - products | | rice, jute, tea, wheat, sugarcane, potatoes, tobacco, pulses, oilseeds, spices, fruit; beef, milk, poultry
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Industries | | cotton textiles, jute, garments, tea processing, paper newsprint, cement, chemical fertilizer, light engineering, sugar
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Industrial production growth rate(%) | | 6.9% (2008 est.)
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Current account balance | | $1.032 billion (2008 est.)
$856.8 million (2007 est.)
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Exports | | $15.44 billion (2008 est.)
$12.47 billion (2007 est.)
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Exports - commodities(%) | | garments, jute and jute goods, leather, frozen fish and seafood
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Exports - partners(%) | | US 21%, Germany 13.2%, UK 8.6%, France 6.3%, Netherlands 4.7% (2008)
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Imports | | $21.51 billion (2008 est.)
$16.67 billion (2007 est.)
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Imports - commodities(%) | | machinery and equipment, chemicals, iron and steel, textiles, foodstuffs, petroleum products, cement
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Imports - partners(%) | | China 14.7%, India 14.7%, Kuwait 7.5%, Singapore 7.1%, Japan 4.1% (2008)
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Reserves of foreign exchange and gold | | $5.789 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
$5.278 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
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Debt - external | | $22.83 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
$21.23 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
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Stock of direct foreign investment - at home | | $5.971 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
$5.261 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
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Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad | | $97 million (31 December 2008 est.)
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Exchange rates | | taka (BDT) per US dollar - 68.554 (2008 est.), 69.893 (2007), 69.031 (2006), 64.328 (2005), 59.513 (2004)
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Currency (code) | | taka (BDT)
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Telephones - main lines in use | | 1.39 million (2009)
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Telephones - mobile cellular | | 45.75 million (2009)
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Telephone system | | general assessment: inadequate for a modern country; fixed-line telephone density remains less than 1 per 100 persons; mobile-cellular telephone subscribership has been increasing rapidly and has reached 30 per 100 persons
domestic: modernizing; introducing digital systems; trunk systems include VHF and UHF microwave radio relay links, and some fiber-optic cable in cities
international: country code - 880; landing point for the SEA-ME-WE-4 fiber-optic submarine cable system that provides links to Europe, the Middle East, and Asia; satellite earth stations - 6; international radiotelephone communications and landline service to neighboring countries (2008)
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Internet country code | | .bd
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Internet users | | 556,000 (2008)
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Airports | | 17 (2009)
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Pipelines(km) | | gas 2,597 km (2008)
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Roadways(km) | | total: 239,226 km
paved: 22,726 km
unpaved: 216,500 km (2003)
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Ports and terminals | | Chittagong, Mongla Port
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Military branches | | Bangladesh Defense Force: Bangladesh Army (Sena Bahini), Bangladesh Navy (Noh Bahini, BN), Bangladesh Air Force (Biman Bahini, BAF) (2009)
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Military service age and obligation(years of age) | | 16 years of age for voluntary military service; 17 years of age for officers (both with parental consent); conscription legally possible in emergency, but has never been implemented (2008)
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Manpower available for military service | | males age 16-49: 41,199,340 (2008 est.)
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Manpower fit for military service | | males age 16-49: 24,946,041
females age 16-49: 31,409,069 (2009 est.)
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Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually | | male: 1,538,865
female: 1,666,670 (2009 est.)
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Military expenditures(% of GDP) | | 1.5% of GDP (2006)
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Disputes - international | | discussions with India remain stalled to delimit a small section of river boundary, exchange territory for 51 small Bangladeshi exclaves in India and 111 small Indian exclaves in Bangladesh, allocate divided villages, and stop illegal cross-border trade, migration, violence, and transit of terrorists through the porous border; Bangladesh protests India's fencing and walling off high-traffic sections of the porous boundary; a joint Bangladesh-India boundary commission resurveyed and reconstructed 92 missing pillars in 2007; dispute with India over New Moore/South Talpatty/Purbasha Island in the Bay of Bengal deters maritime boundary delimitation; after 21 years, Bangladesh resumes talks with Burma on delimiting a maritime boundary
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Refugees and internally displaced persons | | refugees (country of origin): 26,268 (Burma)
IDPs: 65,000 (land conflicts, religious persecution) (2007)
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Electricity - production(kWh) | | 22.99 billion kWh (2007 est.)
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Electricity - production by source(%) | | fossil fuel: 93.7%
hydro: 6.3%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (2001)
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Electricity - consumption(kWh) | | 21.38 billion kWh (2007 est.)
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Electricity - exports(kWh) | | 0 kWh (2008 est.)
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Electricity - imports(kWh) | | 0 kWh (2008 est.)
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Oil - production(bbl/day) | | 6,426 bbl/day (2008 est.)
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Oil - consumption(bbl/day) | | 95,000 bbl/day (2008 est.)
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Oil - exports(bbl/day) | | 2,612 bbl/day (2007 est.)
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Oil - imports(bbl/day) | | 87,660 bbl/day (2007 est.)
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Oil - proved reserves(bbl) | | 28 million bbl (1 January 2009 est.)
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Natural gas - production(cu m) | | 17.9 billion cu m (2008 est.)
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Natural gas - consumption(cu m) | | 17.9 billion cu m (2008 est.)
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Natural gas - exports(cu m) | | 0 cu m (2008)
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Natural gas - proved reserves(cu m) | | 141.6 billion cu m (1 January 2009 est.)
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate(%) | | less than 0.1% (2001 est.)
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS | | 12,000 (2007 est.)
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HIV/AIDS - deaths | | fewer than 500 (2007 est.)
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Major infectious diseases | | 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)
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Literacy(%) | | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 47.9%
male: 54%
female: 41.4% (2001 Census)
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School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)(years) | | total: 8 years
male: 8 years
female: 8 years (2004)
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Education expenditures(% of GDP) | | 2.7% of GDP (2005)
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