Bangladesh at a Glance
Bangladesh is Located in the north-eastern part of South Asia between 20″34′ and 26″38′ North Latitude and 88″01′ and 92″41′ East Longitude. The majestic Himalayas stand some distance to the north, while in the south lays the Bay of Bengal. West Bengal borders on the west and in the east lies the hilly and forested regions of Tripura, Mizoram (India) and Myanmar. These picturesque geographical boundaries frame a low lying plain of about 1,47,570 square kilometer, criss-crossed by innumerable rivers and streams. Major rivers are Padma (Ganges), Meghna, Jamuna, Brahmaputra, Teesta, Surma, and Karnafuli. Bangladesh is strategically located bridging South Asia and Southeast Asia.
| Bangladesh-Fast Facts |
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| Official Name: The People's Republic of Bangladesh Nationality: Bangladeshi Weekly Holidays: Friday & Saturday; some govt and non-govt offices remain open on Saturdays. International Dialing Code: +880 Standard Time : BST (GMT +6 Hours) Capital City: Dhaka |
| Demography | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Population: 164.6 million (2018, BBS) Literacy Rate: 63.6% (2015, BBS) Language: Bangla (national language) spoken by 95%. English is widely understood and spoken. | Religion: Muslims - 86.6%, Hindus - 12.1%, Buddhists - 0.6%, Christians -0.4%, Others -0.3%. | Age Structure: 0-14 years: 29.2% 15-59 years: 63.3% 60 yrs & over: 7.9% Sex ratio: 100.2 male for 100 female (BBS 2017) Annual Population Growth Rate: 1.34% (BBS 2017) | Ethnic Groups: Bengalis 98%; Other Ethnic Groups 2% which includes Chakmas, Marmas, Santals, Garos, Manipuri, Tripura, and Tanchangya and others. |
| Geography | ||
|---|---|---|
Geographical Location: Latitude between 20°34' and 26°38' North Longitude between 88°01' and 92°41' East Area: 147,570 sq. km. (land: 133,910 sq km, water: 10,090 sq km) | Boundaries: Maritime boundary: | Terrain: Mostly flat alluvial plain; hilly in southeast Administrative Units: 8 Divisions – Dhaka, Chattagram, Khulna, Sylhet, Rajshahi, Barisal, Rangpur, Mymensingh 64 Districts, 12 City Corporations, 330 Municipalities, 545 Sub-districts/Upazillas, 644 Police Stations (Thanas), 4571 Unions (smallest administrative units) [BBS 2019] Principal Rivers: Padma, Meghna, Jamuna, Surma, Brahmaputra, Karnaphuli, Teesta, Sitalakhya, Rupsha, Madhumati, Gorai, Mahananda etc. |
| Climate | |
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| Climate Variation: Sub-tropical monsoon Average Temperature and rainfall (BBS 2017): Pre-Monsoon 22.4-32.6° C, 453 mm Monsoon 25.5-31.5° C, 1733 mm Post Monsoon 21.4-30.5 ° C, 210 mm Winter 13.9°-26.5° C, 44 mm Annual 21.2° C – 30.4° C, 203 mm | Average Humidity: Pre-Monsoon 74% Monsoon 86% Post Monsoon 80% Winter 73% Annual 78% |
| Economy | |
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| Bangladesh is currently the 44th largest economy of the world as reported by the World Bank. With a GDP growth rate averaging 6-7% for last decade, reaching as high as 8.13% in 2019. Bangladesh is set to become a major economic power in near future. PWC estimates that Bangladesh economy will become the 28th largest of the world by 2030 and 23rd largest by 2041. Bangladesh will be the 12th economic power of the world in 2050 (UBS). | |
| GDP: $2,064 per capita at current price (2019-20, BBS) | |
| Poverty Level: 20.5% (People living with $2 per day) (2019, BBS) | |
| Foreign Grant Dependency: 2% | |
| Principal Crops: Rice, Jute, Tea, Wheat, Sugarcane, Pulses, Mustard, Potato, Vegetables. | |
| Principal Industries: Garments & Textiles (2nd largest in the world), Tea, Ceramics, Cement, Leather, Jute (largest producer in the world), Pharmaceuticals, Chemicals, Fertilizer, Shrimp Processing, Sugar, Paper, Electric and Electronics, Medicine, Fishing. | |
| Principal Exports: Garments, Knitwear, Frozen Shrimps, Tea, Leather and Leather products, Jute and Jute products, Ceramics, IT Outsourcing, Pharmaceuticals etc. | |
| Principal Imports: Machinery and Equipment, Textile Fabrics and Yarns, Petroleum goods, Iron & Steel, Edible Oil, Wheat, Sugar etc. | |
| Principal Mineral Resources: Natural gas, oil, coal, white clay, glass sand etc. | |
| Labour Force: 63.5 million (QLFS 2016-17, BBS) Male: 43.5 million Female: 20 million | Distribution of Labour: Agriculture: 40.6 percent Industry: 20.4 percent Service: 39 percent |
| Currency: Taka (BDT, Symbol = ৳); Exchange Rate: BDT 84.5/ US$ (August 2019) | |
| Historic Dates |
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| Independence Day: 26th March Victory Day: 16th December Martyr's Day: 21st February (Also recognized as the International Mother Language Day) |
| Information Technology (IT) |
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| Country Domain: .bd Internet Subscribers: 106.4 million (July 2020, BTRC) Mobile Subscribers: 165.6 million (January 2020, BTRC) |
| Global Ranks of Bangladesh |
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| 8th largest country in the world in terms of population 3rd largest Muslim majority country Number 7 globally in Women’s Political Empowerment index (WEF Global Gender Gap Report 2020) No.1 ranked in South Asia in reducing gender gap (WEF Global Gender Gap Index 2020) 2nd largest garments exporter in the world 3rd largest in the world in aquaculture fish production (FAO 2018) Largest producer of Jute (2nd largely grown vegetable fiber in the world) Situated on the Ganges Delta, the largest delta in the world Cox’s Bazar is world’s longest unbroken 120 km natural sandy sea beach Sundarbans (hosted by both Bangladesh and India) is the largest mangrove forest in the world |