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About Bangladesh

Bangladesh, in full, People’s Republic of Bangladesh, republic of southern Asia, in the northeastern portion of the Indian subcontinent, bordered on the west, north, and east by India, on the southeast by Myanmar (formerly known as Burma), and on the south by the Bay of Bengal. The area of the country is 147,570 sq km (56,977 sq mi). The capital and largest city of Bangladesh is Dhaka.

Geographically, historically, and culturally, Bangladesh forms the larger and more populous part of Bengal, the remainder of which constitutes the neighboring Indian state of West Bengal. From 1947 to 1971 the region of Bangladesh was a province of Pakistan. As such, its official designation was changed from East Bengal to East Pakistan in 1955. On March 26, 1971, leaders of East Pakistan declared the region independent as Bangladesh (Bengali for "Bengal nation"), and its independence was assured on December 16, 1971, when Pakistani troops in the region surrendered to a joint force of Bangladeshi and Indian troops.

 LAND AND RESOURCES    (Back to Top)
Bangladesh, a low-lying country traversed by numerous rivers, has a coastline of about 580 km (about 360 mi) along the Bay of Bengal.

A Natural Regions  Most of Bangladesh lies within the broad delta formed by the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers and is exceedingly flat, low-lying, and subject to annual flooding. Much fertile, alluvial soil is deposited by the floodwaters. The only significant area of hilly terrain, constituting less than one-tenth of the nation’s territory, is the Chittagong Hill Tracts District in the narrow southeastern panhandle of the country. There, on the border with Myanmar, is Mowdok Mual (1,003 m/3,292 ft), the country’s highest peak. Small, scattered hills lie along or near the eastern and northern borders with India. The eroded remnants of two old alluvial terraces—the Madhupur Tract, in the north central part of the country, and The Barind, straddling the northwestern boundary with India—attain elevations of about 30 m (about 100 ft). The soil here is much less fertile than the annually replenished alluvium of the surrounding floodplain.

B Rivers and Lakes  Rivers are a prominent and important feature of the landscape in Bangladesh. Some rivers are known by different names in various portions of their course. The Ganges (Ganga), for example, is known as the Padma below the point where it is joined by the Jamuna River, the name given to the lowermost portion of the main channel of the Brahmaputra. The combined stream is then called the Meghna below its confluence with a much smaller tributary of the same name. In the dry season the numerous deltaic distributaries that lace the terrain may be several kilometers wide as they near the Bay of Bengal, whereas at the height of the summer monsoon season they coalesce into an extremely broad expanse of silt-laden water. In much of the delta, therefore, homes must be constructed on earthen platforms or embankments high enough to remain above the level of all but the highest floods. In nonmonsoon months the exposed ground is pocked with water-filled borrow pits, or tanks, from which the mud for the embankments was excavated. These tanks are a chief source of water for drinking, bathing, and small-scale irrigation.

C Climate  
The climate of Bangladesh is of the tropical monsoon variety. In all areas about 80 percent of the annual rainfall typically occurs in the monsoon period, which lasts from late May to mid-October. Mean annual precipitation ranges from about 1,400 mm (about 55 in) along the country’s east central border to more than 5,080 mm (200 in) in the far northeast. In addition to the normal monsoonal rainfall, Bangladesh is subject to devastating cyclones, originating over the Bay of Bengal, in the periods of April to May and September to November. Often accompanied by surging waves, these storms can cause great damage and loss of life. The cyclone of November 1970, in which about 500,000 lives were lost in Bangladesh, was one of the worst natural disasters of the 20th century.

D Vegetation and Animal Life  With the exception of the Chittagong Hill Tracts District, portions of the Madhupur Tract, and the Sundarbans (a great tidal mangrove swamp in the southwestern corner of the country), few extensive forests remain in Bangladesh, the forested and wooded area amounting to about one-eighth of the total area. Broadleaf evergreen species characterize the hilly regions, and deciduous trees, such as acacia and banyan, are common in the drier plains areas. Commercially valuable trees in Bangladesh include sundari (hence the name Sundarbans), gewa, sal (mainly growing in the Madhupur Tract), and garyan (in the Chittagong Hill Tracts District). Village groves abound in fruit trees (mango and jackfruit, for instance) and date and areca (betel) palms. The country also has many varieties of bamboo.

Bangladesh is rich in fauna, including 109 indigenous species of mammals, 684 types of birds, 119 kinds of reptiles, 19 different amphibians, and 200 varieties of marine and freshwater fish. The rhesus monkey is common, and gibbons and lemurs are also found. The Sundarbans area is one of the principal remaining domains of the Bengal tiger, and herds of elephants and many leopards inhabit the Chittagong Hill Tracts District. Other animals living in Bangladesh include mongoose, jackal, Bengal fox, wild boar, parakeet, kingfisher, vulture, and swamp crocodile.

E Mineral Resources  The mineral endowment of Bangladesh is meager. The principal energy resource, natural gas, is found in several small fields in the northeast. There is a coalfield in the northwest and large peat beds underlie most of the delta. Limestone and pottery clays are found in the northeast.

 POPULATION  (Back to Top)
The vast majority of Bangladesh’s inhabitants are Bengalis, who are largely descended from Indo-Aryans who began to migrate into the country from the west thousands of years ago and who mixed within Bengal with indigenous groups of various racial stocks. Ethnic minorities include the Chakma and Mogh, Mongoloid peoples who live in the Chittagong Hill Tracts District; the Santal, mainly descended from migrants from present-day India; and the Biharis, non-Bengali Muslims who migrated from India after the partition.

A Population Characteristics  The estimated population of Bangladesh (1998) was 127,567,002, making Bangladesh one of the ten most populous countries. The overall density, 864 persons per sq km (2,239 persons per sq mi) in 1998, is much higher than that of other countries except for microstates such as Singapore. Bangladesh supports a large rural population, with 19 percent of the Bangladeshi people classified as urban in 1997. The distribution of the population is relatively even, except in the sparsely populated Chittagong Hill Tracts District and the almost totally uninhabited Sundarbans. Most of the people are relatively young, nearly 60 percent being under the age of 25 and only 3 percent being 65 or older. Life expectancy at birth is 57 years.

B Principal Cities  

Among the major cities of Bangladesh are Dhaka, the capital, with 3,368,940 inhabitants (1991); Chittagong, the leading port, with 1,566,070 inhabitants; Khulna, a rapidly growing center for small-scale industry, with 601,051 inhabitants; Nârâyanganj, the inland port for Dhaka, with 268,952 inhabitants; and Râjshâhi, located in a silk-producing area, with 324,532 inhabitants.

C Language   The official language is Bangla, sometimes called Bengali. It is the first language of more than 98 percent of the population. It is written in its own script, derived from that of Sanskrit. Urdu is the language of several hundred thousand people, many of whom emigrated from India in the late 1940s. A number of languages akin to Myanmar are also spoken.

D Religion  Islam, the state religion, is the faith of 88 percent of the population, almost all of whom adhere to the Sunni branch. Hindus make up most of the remainder, and the country has small communities of Buddhists, Christians, and animists.

 EDUCATION AND CULTURAL ACTIVITY     (Back to Top)
Bangladesh lacks sufficient numbers of schools and cultural institutions, even though facilities were increased substantially in the 1970s.

A Education  Public education in Bangladesh generally follows the model established by the British prior to 1947. Elementary education is free, and 84 percent of all primary school-aged children are enrolled in schools. Secondary schools enrolled just 19 percent. Poor school attendance earlier is a major reason for a literacy rate of only 38 percent for Bangladeshis aged 15 and older.

B Cultural Life  
Bangladeshi culture is, in many respects, inseparable from that of greater Bengal, and since the early 19th century a majority of the most widely read and admired Bengali writers and artists, Hindu as well as Muslim, worked for a time in the Indian metropolis of Calcutta. Greatest among these was the Hindu writer, artist, and philosopher Rabindranath Tagore.

C Cultural Institutions  Higher cultural life is concentrated in Dhaka, which is the site of the Bangla Academy (1972), devoted to the promotion and development of the Bengali language and literature. The country’s largest library is part of the University of Dhaka, and the Bangladesh National Museum, also in Dhaka, is noted for its art and archaeology collections. The Varendra Research Museum, controlled by the University of Râjshâhi, is an important center for archaeological, anthropological, and historical research.

D Communications  In 1996, 37 daily newspapers, including both Bengali- and English-language dailies, were published in Bangladesh, chiefly in Dhaka. The country also has many weekly and monthly periodicals. Radio Bangladesh and Bangladesh Television are under government direction. In 1996 the country had 50 radio receivers and 6 televisions sets for every 1,000 residents. In 1996 there were 3 telephone mainlines for every 1,000 people.

V GOVERNMENT      (Back to Top)
Since the nation’s formation in 1971, the government of Bangladesh has undergone many changes. A secular parliamentary form of democracy was established by the 1972 constitution, but it was suspended in late 1974 and replaced in January 1975 by a presidential form of government. The 1972 constitution, as amended, was suspended again in 1982 after a coup d’état. A ban on political activities was rescinded and the constitution reinstated in 1986.

Executive and Legislature  In February 1991 a parliament of 300 members was elected; 30 additional seats were subsequently filled by indirect ballot. Constitutional provisions abolishing presidential government and restoring a parliamentary democracy, headed by a Prime Minister, were approved by parliament in August 1991 and ratified by popular referendum in September.

Judiciary  The highest tribunal in Bangladesh is the Supreme Court, which is divided into a high court and an appellate division. The chief justice and the other justices of the supreme court are appointed by the president.

Local Government  Bangladesh is administered in six divisions-Barisâl, Chittagong, Dhaka, Khulna, Râjshâ, and Sylhet. Smaller units of government include unions, which are groups of villages with popularly elected councils; thanas (groups of unions); and, administratively most important, zillas (districts), which are groups of thanas.

Political Parties  The principal political groups in the 1991 parliamentary elections included (in order of finish) the Bangladesh Nationalist Party; an eight-party coalition led by the Awami League; the Jatiya Party; and the Jamaat-e-Islami Party. The 1996 elections brought a shift in power as the Awami League gained the majority and the Bangladesh Nationalist Party became the opposition.

  Health and Welfare  Health and welfare services in Bangladesh are limited. In 1995 the country had one physician for every 4,970 residents and one hospital bed for every 3,280 inhabitants. Much of the welfare work in the country is administered by voluntary organizations, and Bangladesh is a major recipient of assistance from abroad.

Defense  Military service in Bangladesh is voluntary. In 1997 the nation had an army of 101,000 members, a navy of 10,500 members, and an air force of 9,500 members.

International Organizations  Bangladesh is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations and was admitted to the United Nations in 1974. It also belongs to the Colombo Plan for Cooperative Economic and Social Development, headquartered in Sri Lanka.

VI ECONOMY     (Back to Top)
First as part of British India and then of Pakistan, the area now constituting Bangladesh suffered from chronic economic neglect. The region produced large quantities of agricultural goods, including most of the world’s jute, but received little investment in such basic items as transportation facilities and industrial plants. Bangladesh’s gross domestic product was estimated at $41.4 billion in 1997. In 1992 Bangladesh’s budget was estimated to include $2.8 billion in revenues and $4.1 billion in expenditures.

A Labor  The civilian labor force of Bangladesh was estimated in 1997 to include 63.1 million people. Agriculture (including fishing) employs 65 percent of the workers, while 16 percent worked in industry and 18 percent in services. Unemployment and underemployment are significant problems in the country.

B Agriculture  About 23.8 percent of the gross domestic product derives from agriculture. Most farms are small, and per-capita output is low. Rice, of which two or three crops can be grown each year, is the leading food crop in all areas and accounts for at least five-sixths of the cultivated area. Some 28 million metric tons were harvested in 1998, placing Bangladesh among the world’s leading producers of rice. Pulses, the main source of vegetable protein, are the most important food crop after rice. Various oilseeds (mainly for cooking oil), wheat, potatoes, sweet potatoes, sugarcane, bananas, mangoes, and pineapples also are raised.

C Fishing, Forestry, and Mining  Aquatic animals provide the chief source of animal protein in the Bangladeshi diet. Hilsa (a kind of herring) and prawns are among the principal commercial species. The amount of fish caught in 1996 was 1.2 million metric tons, mostly consisting of freshwater varieties. The leading commercial types of trees are wild sundari, gewa, and teak. Bamboo is also an important forest product. Mining and quarrying, apart from the modest production of natural gas, are of negligible importance.

D Manufacturing  The manufacturing sector, which contributed 9.56 percent of Bangladesh’s domestic product in 1996, is made up principally of unmechanized, small-scale enterprises. The chief manufactures of the country are jute products (such as cordage and sacks), textiles, processed food, beverages, tobacco items, and goods made of wood, cane, or bamboo. Large-scale factories process jute and sugarcane. Much of the nation’s heavy industry, including a small steel mill, is in the port of Chittagong.

E Energy  The greatest share of Bangladesh’s electricity, 93 percent in 1997, is generated in thermal plants using either coal, natural gas, or petroleum products. Most of the rest is produced by hydroelectric facilities, including a large installation on the Karnaphuli River. In 1997 Bangladesh consumed 11.4 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity.

F Transportation  The numerous rivers of Bangladesh and the marked seasonal fluctuation in their width and depth greatly inhibit the development of an integrated road and rail transport system. Bridging the major channels is not feasible economically, and reliance on ferry connections makes most long-distance overland travel exceedingly slow. The country has 204,022 km (126,773 mi) of roads, of which 12 percent are paved; the road network may be severely damaged by monsoon flooding. In 1997 there was only 1 vehicle in use for every 1,000 residents. The country is served by 2,746km (1,706mi) of operated railroad track.

G Currency and Banking  The principal unit of currency in Bangladesh is the taka (53.89 taka equal U.S.$1; 2000 average); the taka is divided into 100 paisa. The government-run Bangladesh Bank handles central-banking operations.

H Commerce and Foreign Trade  The per-capita volume of Bangladeshi internal and foreign trade is low. Domestic trade is conducted largely through thousands of periodic markets called hats. Since independence in 1971 the value of Bangladesh’s annual imports has usually been at least twice that of exports; in 1996 imports cost $6.6 billion, and exports earned $3.3 billion. The principal exports are jute products and raw jute; clothing, seafood, tea, and hides and leather goods are the other important exports. Imports include foodstuffs, basic manufactures, mineral fuels, machinery, and transportation equipment. Exports go mainly to European countries (especially Germany and Italy), the United States, Hong Kong, and Japan; imports come chiefly from the India, European countries, China, Japan, Hong Kong, South Korea, and the United States. Only a small number of tourists visit Bangladesh each year.

 HISTORY  For the history of the territory prior to 1947, see India; Pakistan.   (Back to Top)

A proposal by Ershad to require all schools to teach Arabic and the Qur'an (Koran) sparked demonstrations and riots in February 1983. Later in the year limited political activities were allowed to resume; in December Ershad assumed the presidency. The long-postponed parliamentary elections took place in May 1986. Some members boycotted the initial meetings of parliament because Ershad did not lift martial law. In an October 1986 presidential election that was boycotted by opposition parties, Ershad was elected to a five-year term with a majority of more than 80 percent. In November, after parliament passed legislation protecting his military regime from reprisals, Ershad lifted martial law and reinstated the constitution. Devastating floods in September 1988 inundated about three-fourths of the country and left an estimated 30 million people homeless. Faced with rising political opposition, Ershad resigned in December 1990; he was subsequently convicted and imprisoned on charges of corruption and illegal weapons possession. In February 1991, Begum Khaleda Zia, widow of President Rahman, was elected prime minister, which, after a constitution change later that year, became the governmental position with primary executive power.