Bangladesh : Present Fact and file

Bangladesh Country Profile Bangladesh emerged as an independent State on 16th December, 1971, after 9 months long liberation war fought against Pakistan. Bangladesh is a semi-tropical riverine country with monsoon climate. It lies in the north-astern part of South Asia between 20º34’ and 26º38’ north latitude, and 88º01’ and 92º41’ east longitude. Bangladesh has about 250 Major rivers with a total length of 24,140km and innumerable canals, oxbow lakes and wetlands. Forest covers about 07 percent of the land area. With 135.2 million (2004) people crowded into an area of 147,570sq.km, Bangladesh has the highest population density in the world, i.e., 916 persons per sq.km excepting city-state like Singapore. The percentage of urban population in 22 percent, while rest of the population concentrated in over 86,000 villages in the country. The current population growth rate is 1.48 percent (2002). Bangladesh comprises of 6 divisions namely Dhaka, Barisal, Chittagong, Rajshahi, Khulna & Sylhet. Bangladesh is a monolingual country. This is an added advantage for national integration and development. General Official Name The People's Republic of Bangladesh Capital City Dhaka Independence Day 26th March Geographical location In South Asia between 20º24' and 26º38' Latitude and between 88º.01' & 92º.41' east longitude Area 1,47,570 Sq.Km Administrative Units (BBS-2001) Division-6, District-64, Upazilla/Thana-507 Municipal Corporation: 4 Municipalities-223, Union Parishad-4484, Village-87319 Territorial Water 12 Nautical Miles Time GMT+6hour Main Seasons Winter (November-February) Summer (May-June) Monsoon (July-October) Principal Rivers Padma,Megna,Brahmaputra,Tista and Karnophuli,(Total 290 rivers including tributaries and branches.) Best Tourist Season Octobar to March Language National Language: Bengali-98% English is also widely spoken and understood. Demographical Statistics Population 123.2 Million (Population Census-2001) (Enumerated) Population (million) 2005 (projected) 137.0 Population growth rate (%), 2004 1.48 Male Female Ratio, 2002 105.4 Density 834 Per Square Km. (Census-2001) Density of Population/sq. kilometer, 2005 (Projection) 928 Crude Birth Rate (per 1000 No.), 2002 20.21 Crude Death Rate (per 1000 No.), 2002 5.1 Child Mortality Rate (per 1000 Live birth), 2002 (less than one year old) 53.27 Expectancy of Life, 2002 64.9 Male 64.5 Female 64.4 Mean Age at First Marriage, 2002 Male 25.6 Female 20.6 Fertility Rate (per women), 2002 2.56 Contraception Prevalence Rate, 2002 53.39 Health and Social Service Patient per Bed in Govt. Hospital , 2003 4109 Population per Registered Physician, 2003 3866 Safe Water Availability to Population (%), 2004 96.3 Population using Sanitary Latrine (%), 2004 52.6 Literacy Rate, 2002 62.66% Labour Force and Employment Labour Force survey, 2002-03 Total Labour Force (Crore) * 10 million= 1 crore 4.43 Male 4.43 Female 0.93 Population Working in as % of Total Labour Force Agriculture 51.69 Industry 13.56 Service 34.75 Poverty (Poverty Survey 2004) Food Energy Intake (FEI) (% of Population) National 42.1 Rural 43.3 Urban 37.9 GDP, 2004-05* GDP in Current Price (crore taka) 368476 GDP in Fixed Price (1995-96) (crore taka) 265512 GDP Growth Rate in Fixed Price (%) 5.38 Per Capita National Income in Current Price (taka) 31669 Per Capita National Income in Current Price (US$) 482 Per Capita GDP in Current Price (Taka) 26898 Per capita GDP in Current Price (US$) 445 * 10 million = 1 crore Savings and Investment (% of GDP), 2004-05* Savings 20.16 National Savings 26.49 Gross Investment 24.43 Government 5.90 Private 18.53 Source: Bangladesh Economic Review 2005, Ministry of Finance.