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| Introduction | Bangladesh |
| 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 floods annually during the monsoon rainy season, hampering economic development. |
| People | Bangladesh |
| Population: | 141,340,476 (July 2004 est.) |
| Age structure: | 0-14 years: 33.5% (male 24,359,149; female 23,013,811) 15-64 years: 63.1% (male 45,557,963; female 43,626,950) 65 years and over: 3.4% (male 2,575,519; female 2,207,084) (2004 est.) |
| Median age: | total: 21.5 years male: 21.5 years female: 21.5 years (2004 est.) |
| Population growth rate: | 2.08% (2004 est.) |
| Birth rate: | 30.03 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Death rate: | 8.52 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Net migration rate: | -0.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Sex ratio: | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.17 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
| Infant mortality rate: | total: 64.32 deaths/1,000 live births female: 63.16 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) male: 65.41 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Life expectancy at birth: | total population: 61.71 years male: 61.8 years female: 61.61 years (2004 est.) |
| Total fertility rate: | 3.15 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: | less than 0.1% (2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: | 13,000 (2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - deaths: | 650 (2001 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: 43.1% male: 53.9% female: 31.8% (2003 est.) |
| Government | Bangladesh |
| 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: | 6 divisions; Barisal, Chittagong, Dhaka, Khulna, Rajshahi, and 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 Iajuddin AHMED (since 6 September 2002); 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 Khaleda ZIA (since 10 October 2001) cabinet: Cabinet selected by the prime minister and appointed by the president elections: president elected by National Parliament for a five-year term; election scheduled for 16 September 2002 was not held since Iajuddin AHMED was the only presidential candidate; he was sworn in on 6 September 2002 (next election to be held by NA 2007); following legislative elections, the leader of the party that wins the most seats is usually appointed prime minister by the president election results: Iajuddin AHMED declared by the Election Commission elected unopposed as president; percent of National Parliament vote - NA |
| Legislative branch: | unicameral National Parliament or Jatiya Sangsad; 300 seats elected by popular vote from single territorial constituencies (the constitutional amendment reserving 30 seats for women over and above the 300 regular parliament seats expired in May 2001); members serve five-year terms elections: last held 1 October 2001 (next to be held before October 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - BNP and alliance partners 46%, AL 42%; seats by party - BNP 191, AL 62, JI 18, JP (Ershad faction) 14, IOJ 2, JP (Naziur) 4, other 9; note - the election of October 2001 brought a majority BNP government aligned with three other smaller parties - Jamaat-i-Islami, Islami Oikya Jote, and Jatiya Party (Manzur) |
| 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 ZIA, chairperson]; Islami Oikya Jote or IOJ [Mufti Fazlul Haq AMINI]; Jamaat-e-Islami or JI [Motiur Rahman NIZAMI]; Jatiya Party or JP (Ershad faction) [Hussain Mohammad ERSHAD]; Jatiya Party (Manzur faction) [Naziur Rahman MANZUR] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders: | NA |
| International organization participation: | AsDB, C, CP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OPCW, SAARC, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNMISET, UNOMIG, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
| Diplomatic representation in the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador Syed Hasan AHMAD consulate(s) general: Los Angeles and New York FAX: [1] (202) 244-5366 telephone: [1] (202) 244-0183 chancery: 3510 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 |
| Diplomatic representation from the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador Harry K. THOMAS, Jr. 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 |
| 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 |
| Communications | Bangladesh |
| Telephones - main lines in use: | 740,000 (2003) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular: | 1.365 million (2003) |
| 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: country code - 880; 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 hosts: | 1 (2003) |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs): | 10 (2000) |
| Internet users: | 243,000 (2003) |
| Transportation | Bangladesh |
| Railways: | total: 2,706 km broad gauge: 884 km 1.676-m gauge narrow gauge: 1,822 km 1.000-m gauge (2003) |
| Highways: | total: 207,486 km paved: 19,773 km unpaved: 187,713 km (1999) |
| Waterways: | 8,372 km note: includes 2,575 km main cargo routes (2004) |
| Pipelines: | gas 2,012 km (2004) |
| Ports and harbors: | Chittagong, Dhaka, Mongla Port, Narayanganj |
| Merchant marine: | total: 40 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 319,897 GRT/440,575 DWT by type: bulk 2, cargo 24, container 10, passenger 1, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 1 foreign-owned: China 1, Singapore 9 registered in other countries: 10 (2003 est.) |
| Airports: | 16 (2003 est.) |
| Airports - with paved runways: | total: 15 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 6 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways: | total: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
| Military | Bangladesh |
| Military branches: | Army, Navy, Air Force |
| Military manpower - availability: | males age 15-49: 39,523,128 (2004 est.) |
| Military manpower - fit for military service: | males age 15-49: 23,441,482 (2004 est.) |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure: | $606.8 million (2003) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP: | 1.2% (2003) |
| Transnational Issues | Bangladesh |
| Disputes - international: | discussions with India remain stalled to delimit a small section of river boundary, exchange 162 miniscule enclaves in both countries, allocate divided villages, and stop illegal cross-border trade, migration, and violence; Bangladesh protests India's attempts to fence off high-traffic sections of the porous boundary; dispute with India over New Moore/South Talpatty/Purbasha Island in the Bay of Bengal deters maritime boundary delimitation; Burmese Muslim refugees strain Bangladesh's meager resources |
| Refugees and internally displaced persons: | IDPs: 61,000 (land conflicts, religious persecution) (2004) |
| Illicit drugs: | transit country for illegal drugs produced in neighboring countries |
| This page was last updated on 16 December, 2004 |
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