Bangladesh

Full name of country: People's Republic of Bangladesh

Region: South Asia

Official language: Bangla (Bengali)

Population: 168,697,184 (2024 est.)

Nationality: Bangladeshi(s) (noun), Bangladeshi (adjective)

Land area: 130,168 sq km (50,258 sq miles)

Water area: 13,830 sq km (5,340 sq miles)

Capital: Dhaka

National anthem: "Amar Shonar Bangla" (My Golden Bengal), by Rabindranath Tagore

National holiday: Independence Day, March 26 (1971); Victory Day

Population growth: 0.89% (2024 est.)

Time zone: UTC +6

Flag: The flag of Bangladesh is characterized by a solid dark green flag with a large red circle placed slightly to the left of center. The green represents Bangladesh’s rich vegetation and the red represents the blood shed in the fight for the country’s independence.

Independence: December 16, 1971 (from West Pakistan)

Government type: parliamentary democracy

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Legal system: mixed legal system of mostly English common law and Islamic law

The People’s Republic of Bangladesh is a densely populated nation located in Southeast Asia between India and Myanmar, with the Bay of Bengal to the south. Encompassing part of the historical region known as Bengal, it shares many aspects of the wider ancient culture of the vast Indian subcontinent, but is itself a relatively young nation.

In 1947, following the end of the British colonial period, the subcontinent was partitioned along religious lines into Hindu-dominated India and Muslim-dominated Pakistan, which was itself divided into two geographically and culturally distinct wings, known as West and East Pakistan. In 1971, East Pakistan ceded from West Pakistan and won its independence after a short, violent war, becoming Bangladesh.

The decades since have been marked by political turmoil, government corruption, and a series of devastating natural disasters to which the low-lying country is prone. Despite the steps taken by the government toward reducing poverty and controlling population growth, Bangladesh remained one of the poorest, least developed countries in the world for many years. By the 2020s, however, the country had made significant improvements in its poverty rate, food security, and maternal health, due in part to help from the international community.

Note: unless otherwise indicated, statistical data in this article is sourced from the CIA World Factbook, as cited in the bibliography.

People and Culture

Population: According to Bangladesh's 2022 census, at least 99 percent of the population is ethnic Bengali. Minority groups include the Biharis and various indigenous tribes. The Biharis, also known as stranded Pakistanis, are a group that migrated to East Pakistan from India, primarily from the state of Bihar, following the partition of India in 1947. After Bangladesh’s secession from Pakistan, they possessed neither Bangladeshi nor Pakistani citizenship. Many Biharis have been forced to move to Pakistan, although in 2008 Bangladesh granted citizenship to those who were minors in 1971 or born later.

The Bangladeshi government officially recognizes twenty-seven indigenous groups, although other sources have identified closer to seventy-five. The tribal groups generally live in rural border regions and are of Sino-Tibetan or Tibeto-Burman descent. The largest tribal group is the Chakmas, followed by the Marmas, both believed to descend from the Arakanese people in modern-day Myanmar. Other groups include the Khasis, the Tripuris, the Mros, and the Santals.

Bangladesh has a young, growing population. Government efforts to encourage family planning have successfully slowed the population growth rate. Life expectancy was 73.1 years for males and 77.5 years for females according to 2024 estimates. The country ranked 129th out of 193 countries on the 2022 United Nations Human Development Index (HDI).

Bangladesh is one of the most densely population countries in the world. About 40.5 percent of the population lives in urban areas, according to 2023 estimates. The capital, Dhaka, is the largest urban center, with approximately 23.210 million residents. It is followed by Chittagong (5.38 million residents), Khulna (955,000), and Rajshahi has a population of 962,000 (2023 estimates).

Bangla (or Bengali), the official and dominant language, belongs to the Indo-European language family. The Bangla alphabet is related to Sanskrit and has fifty-one letters, forty consonants and eleven vowels. The Biharis speak Urdu, and the tribal groups speak various Sino-Tibetan and Tibeto-Burman languages. Among the educated, English is an important second language.

About 91 percent of the Bangladeshi population practices Islam, most predominantly Sunni Islam, although there are a small number of Shia Muslims. Hindus make up the largest minority religion, estimated at 8 percent of the population in 2022. Small groups of Christians, Buddhists, and animists also live in Bangladesh.

Indigenous People: The Bengalis, the Biharis, and some tribal groups have been settled on the Indian subcontinent since ancient times. Indo-Aryans began migrating into the region now known as Bangladesh from the north around 3,500 years ago. It is not certain whether they displaced or intermingled with the indigenous groups already living in the region. The Tibeto-Burman tribal groups originated in neighboring Burma.

Education: Education in Bangladesh is free and compulsory between the ages of six and ten. However, there is a general shortage of facilities and materials at government institutions. The country’s small number of private schools are better equipped and cater to the wealthier classes.

School enrollment tapers off considerably at the secondary education level, when tuition fees are charged. Though education is encouraged for both sexes, girls in rural areas are at more of a disadvantage than boys. This is reflected in the country’s literacy rate, which was estimated at 77.8 percent among males and 72 percent among females (74.9 percent overall) in 2020. To address the disparity, secondary education was made free for girls up to grade ten. In addition to its efforts to improve primary and secondary education, the government sponsors adult literacy programs.

The largest universities in Bangladesh are the University of Dhaka and the University of Rajshahi, both public universities. Higher education in Bangladesh was strictly government funded until the passage of the Private University Act 1992, which allowed for the establishment of private institutions. There are dozens of public universities throughout the country—including the National University, a network of more than two thousand affiliated institutions—and approximately one hundred private universities, mostly in and around Dhaka. In addition, Bangladesh is home to the international universities the Asian University for Women, in Chittagong, and the Islamic University of Technology, just outside Dhaka.

Health Care: Though it has improved in the twenty-first century, Bangladesh’s health care system is still inadequate and struggles to cope with the needs of its large population. There are too few hospitals and health care workers, and many rural areas lack medical services. The country relies on nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), foreign aid, and the private sector for many of the services and supplies that are available. In rural areas, many people follow traditional medical practices.

Natural disasters and general poverty have combined to create a situation in which many treatable illnesses, including bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A and E, typhoid fever, malaria, and dengue fever, are prevalent. Malnutrition among children is also a serious problem.

Food: Bangladeshi cuisine shares many dishes with Indian cuisine. A typical meal begins with boiled rice and fried vegetables, followed by dahl, a dish of yellow lentils. Rice and a spicy curry, usually with fish, is a typical main course; lamb, beef, and chicken may also be used in curries.

Meals are generally accompanied by chapati, a flat bread, and are eaten with the right hand. Bengali desserts, such as kheer, a sweet rice pudding, are very sweet. Lime juice, coconut water, and tea with milk are popular drinks.

Arts & Entertainment: Modern Bengali culture has some of its deepest roots in the city of Kolkata (Calcutta), which became part of India following the partition of the subcontinent, and many of the country’s most revered artists were associated with what was then West Bengal.

Poetry is a popular literary form, and two of the most prominent poets are Rabindranath Tagore (1861–1941) and Kazi Nazrul Islam (1899–1976), both of whom were ardent nationalists. Tagore is especially known in the West as the first Asian to win a Nobel Prize in Literature (1913). Though most renowned for his poetry, he also wrote novels, stories, and works of philosophy.

Both Tagore’s and Islam’s poems remain popular in part because they have been set to classical Bengali music called uchango. Another form of folk music is baul, a set of devotional songs that can have a basis in either Muslim or Hindu belief. Music in Bangladesh is often accompanied by professional dancers and traditional instrumentation.

Bangladeshis excel at many traditional crafts, particularly embroidery and weaving. Commonly produced textiles include quilts, carpets, and saris. Pottery and leatherwork are also produced.

Among Western sports, football (soccer), cricket, and badminton are the most popular in Bangladesh. They are widely played, and both football and cricket have devoted followings. Local sports include kabaddi, a type of wrestling between two teams of six players, and river races in vessels that resemble canoes.

Holidays: The main religious celebrations in Bangladesh are Islamic. These include Ramadan, the month of dusk-to-dawn fasting; Eid al-Fitr, which ends Ramadan; and Eid al-Adha, which commemorates Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son to God. These latter two holidays entail visits to family and friends, large feasts, the donning of new clothes, visits to the mosque, and the exchange of small gifts.

The country’s Hindu population holds a religious festival called Durga Puja. It entails the building of a clay statue of the fertility goddess Durga, days of prayers and feasting, and, at the holiday’s end, the dissolving of the statue in sacred waters.

The Bengali New Year, known as Pohela Boisakh, falls on April 14 in Bangladesh. (Bengalis in India celebrate on April 15.) At this time, festivals are held across the country. Families and friends gather for feasts, and traditional musical and theatrical entertainments are performed.

Important secular holidays focus on Bangladesh’s struggle to become a nation. Martyrs’ Day (February 21) commemorates a 1952 pro-independence demonstration that ended in bloodshed. Independence Day (March 26) marks the day in 1971 on which Bangladesh proclaimed its independence from Pakistan. Nine months of civil war followed, and the end of the war is marked by Victory Day (December 16).

Environment and Geography

Topography: Bangladesh has two basic topographic regions: the flat, broad, low-lying alluvial plain, which is crisscrossed with rivers, and the hilly terrain in the southeast and north. The alluvial plain accounts for approximately 80 percent of the country’s total area. Its elevation does not generally exceed 10 meters (33 feet), though it is higher in the north and reaches sea level along the southern coast. More than 10 percent of the plain is regularly covered with water; during monsoons, flooding is extensive.

In the southeast of Bangladesh, the Chittagong Hills rise above the plain to elevations between 600 meters (1,969 feet) and 900 meters (2,953 feet), generally extending from north to south. The country’s highest point, Keokradong, rises to 1,046 meters (3,432 feet) above sea level in these hills. There are also highlands in the north and the low Sylhet Hills in the northeast.

Approximately seven hundred rivers drain the plain of Bangladesh, most of them flowing south into the Bay of Bengal from their origins in the Himalayas. The three major river systems are the Ganges, the Brahmaputra, and the Meghna. The Ganges and the Brahmaputra join to form the Padma, which in turn joins the Meghna. The rivers have formed estuaries in the coastline, which measures 580 kilometers (360 miles).

Natural Resources: Bangladesh’s most important natural resources are natural gas and rich alluvial land. Timber, peat, limestone, clay, and coal are present in small quantities.

Bangladesh has several major environmental problems that are naturally occurring. Flooding, which brings rich silt to the plains of the country, can also cause widespread death and destruction. Arsenic, found in the soil, contaminates the groundwater and makes much of it unsafe for drinking.

Human-made problems threatening the environment include the pollution of water and soil from pesticides, soil erosion, deforestation, and overpopulation. Scientists have predicted that Bangladesh will be one of the countries most adversely affected by global warming, particularly due to concerns related to sea-level rise.

Plants & Animals: Animal life in Bangladesh is extensive. Among the mammals are monkeys, apes, tigers, crocodiles, boar, elephants, deer, and leopards. There are also many fish, reptiles, and birds, including kingfishers, mynah birds, and woodpeckers. The Asian elephant, the tiger, and several primates are among those species classified as endangered, and the Asian giant tortoise and the Sumatran rhinoceros are among the critically endangered. Wildlife poaching remains a problem despite government efforts to curb it.

Bangladesh has few uninterrupted forests. Exceptions are the Sundarbans, an area bordering the Bay of Bengal that has a large mangrove swamp, and the country’s hilly regions, where evergreens grow. In the lowlands, bamboo, banyan, palm, acacia, and fruit trees grow.

Climate: Bangladesh has a subtropical climate. Warm temperatures and high humidity occur throughout the year, with only minor variations in temperature between seasons and regions. In May, temperatures average between 32 degrees and 38 degrees Celsius (90 degrees and 100 degrees Fahrenheit); in January, the average is around 19 degrees Celsius (66 degrees Fahrenheit).

Three seasons prevail in Bangladesh. From March to June, the weather is hot and humid. A cooler monsoon season lasts from June to October. From October to March, the weather is cool and dry. During the monsoon season, when 80 percent of the annual rainfall occurs, approximately one-third of the country is flooded. The northeastern region of Sylhet receives the most rainfall, averaging 5,080 millimeters (200 inches) annually. In most of the country, rainfall measuring 2,000 millimeters (79 inches) annually is typical.

In addition to the flooding of the rivers during the monsoons, Bangladesh is prone to several other types of natural disasters. Tidal waves, tropical cyclones, and tornadoes generally strike between April and May, and again between September and November. They can bring widespread destruction of land, property, and human life. The region is prone to earthquakes as well. During the twentieth century, Bangladesh was at the center of some of the world’s worst natural calamities.

Economy

Bangladesh long had one of the least developed economies in the world. Around 24.3 percent of the population still lived below the poverty line as of 2016, though this number was a substantial improvement over poverty rates at the start of the twenty-first century that exceeded 50 percent. There was significant economic growth in the late 2010s, however, supported by much international aid. Although the COVID-19 pandemic that began in 2020 caused major disruptions, in 2021 the UN recognized enough progress to officially upgrade Bangladesh's classification from a least-developed-country (LDC) effective in 2026.

Despite these improvements, economic challenges remain. Though international aid has been high, foreign investment is low in comparison to the amounts received by other Asian countries. Moreover, corruption is widespread in the country’s upper echelons.

An estimated 5.06 percent of the labor force was unemployed in 2023. Another 40 percent or so is underemployed, with many laborers working only a few hours per week for low wages. Money earned by laborers working low-paying jobs abroad, mostly in Malaysia and the Persian Gulf states, remains important to the economy. The estimated gross domestic product (GDP, purchasing power parity) of Bangladesh in 2023 was US$1.413 trillion, or US$8,200 per capita.

Industry: Industry accounted for an estimated 34.6 percent of Bangladesh’s 2023 GDP. Unlike many other Asian countries, Bangladesh does not have a large-scale manufacturing sector. Industries include the production of garments, textiles, iron and steel, ceramics, petroleum products, natural gas, pharmaceuticals, fabricated metal products, and cement, and the processing of tea, sugar, jute, and tobacco. Bangladesh’s garment industry has long been its main source of exports.

Bangladesh produces energy through thermal and hydroelectric plants. Natural gas reserves both onshore and in the Bay of Bengal are being developed. It is hoped that these reserves will help foster substantial economic growth.

Agriculture: Agriculture accounted for an estimated 11 percent of the 2023 GDP. Subsistence farming is the norm. Rice is the most widely cultivated crop, and jute is the biggest earner in the export market. Wheat, pulses, oilseeds, sugarcane, fruits, tobacco, tea, and potatoes are also important crops. Rubber trees are cultivated for rubber, and bamboo and hardwoods such as teak are central to the small timber industry.

Cattle and buffalo are the most common livestock. They are used for work and as sources of meat, leather, and dung. Freshwater fish are commonly raised in ponds.

Tourism: Bangladesh’s undeveloped infrastructure has hindered the growth of a tourism sector that could potentially rival that of other Asian countries.

Cultural attractions include mosques and Hindu and Buddhist temples. Collections of historical artifacts from all three religious traditions are displayed at the Bangladesh National Museum in Dhaka. Many visitors come for river trips through the lush natural landscapes and to see the flora and fauna, especially in the Surma River Valley and the coastal area, known as the Sundarbans. Cox’s Bazar, a beach resort, is one of the country’s most visited places.

Government

Independent since 1971, Bangladesh is a young nation. According to the constitution that was enacted the following year and reaffirmed by referendum in 1991, the country is a parliamentary democracy.

Executive power is vested in a prime minister, who serves as head of government. A president, elected by the parliament to a five-year term, serves in the largely ceremonial role of head of state. He or she is responsible for appointing the prime minister based on a majority nomination of the parliament. By convention, the prime minister is usually the head of the political party that holds a legislative majority. The executive cabinet is also composed of parliament members.

The legislature is a unicameral body called the Jatiya Sangsad, or House of the Nation. It consists of 350 members, 300 of whom are elected by popular vote to five-year terms. The remaining seats are filled by women who are chosen by the elected members.

The Supreme Court of Bangladesh, the country’s highest court, is divided into the High Court Division and the Appellate Division. The president is responsible for appointing the justices.

Bangladesh consists of eight administrative divisions, which are further divided into districts, subdistricts, and unions (groups of villages). Unions are governed by union councils, consisting of a chairman and twelve members. All council members are elected, including the three seats reserved for women. Districts are governed by district councils; although Bangladesh’s constitution states that district councils should also be elected, in practice, half of the members are elected by the union councils and half are appointed by the government.

Mohammed Shahabuddin was elected unopposed in the 2023 presidential election. He was nominated by the ruling Awami League. Before being elected to the largely ceremonial post, he had served as a judge and as a commissioner of the Anti-Corruption Commission.

Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus was sworn in as Bangladesh's interim prime minster in August 2024 after Sheikh Hasina - the woman who ruled Bangladesh with an iron fist for 15 years - fled across the border to India.

Interesting Facts

• In Bangladeshi cities, carriages attached to bicycles are a common form of transportation.
• Bangladesh is the world’s leading producer of jute, a fiber that can be processed into twine and rope.
• Bangladesh launched its first nanosatellite, assembled by university students, from the International Space Station in 2017.

Bibliography

Ahmed, Syed Masud, et al. Bangladesh Health System Review. Edited by Aliya Naheed and Krishna Hort, vol. 5, no 3, Asia Pacific Observatory on Public Health Systems and Policies World Health Organization, 2015, apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/208214/1/9789290617051‗eng.pdf. Accessed 14 Aug. 2015.

"Bangladesh." The World Bank, data.worldbank.org/country/bangladesh. Accessed 27 Jan. 2025.

"Bangladesh." The World Factbook, Central Intelligence Agency, 21 Jan. 2025, www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/bangladesh/. Accessed 27 Jan. 2025.

"Human Development Insights." UNDP Human Development Reports, 13 Mar. 2024, hdr.undp.org/data-center/country-insights#/ranks. Accessed 27 Jan. 2025.