Bangladesh (2001) | Montserrat (2002) | |
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Administrative divisions | 5 divisions; Barisal, Chittagong, Dhaka, Khulna, Rajshahi; note - there may be one additional division named Sylhet | 3 parishes; Saint Anthony, Saint Georges, Saint Peter |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
35.04% (male 23,550,607; female 22,451,006) 15-64 years: 61.6% (male 41,432,123; female 39,434,633) 65 years and over: 3.36% (male 2,389,639; female 2,011,852) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 23.6% (male 1,001; female 986)
15-64 years: 65% (male 2,624; female 2,864) 65 years and over: 11.4% (male 508; female 454) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, jute, tea, wheat, sugarcane, potatoes, tobacco, pulses, oilseeds, spices, fruit; beef, milk, poultry | cabbages, carrots, cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, peppers; livestock products |
Airports | 18 (2000 est.) | none; only airport was destroyed by volcanic activity; a helicopter service to Antigua is used |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
15 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 5 (2000 est.) |
- |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
- |
Area | total:
144,000 sq km land: 133,910 sq km water: 10,090 sq km |
total: 102 sq km
land: 102 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Wisconsin | about 0.6 times the size of Washington, DC |
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 annually floods during the monsoon rainy season, hampering economic development. | Much of this island has been devastated and two-thirds of the population has fled abroad due to the eruption of the Soufriere Hills volcano that began on 18 July 1995. |
Birth rate | 25.3 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 17.54 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$4.9 billion expenditures: $6.8 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY99/00 est.) |
revenues: $31.4 million
expenditures: $31.6 million, including capital expenditures of $8.4 million |
Capital | Dhaka | Plymouth (abandoned in 1997 due to volcanic activity; interim government buildings have been built at Brades Estate, in the Carr's Bay/Little Bay vicinity at the northwest end of Montserrat) |
Climate | tropical; mild winter (October to March); hot, humid summer (March to June); humid, warm rainy monsoon (June to October) | tropical; little daily or seasonal temperature variation |
Coastline | 580 km | 40 km |
Constitution | 4 November 1972, effective 16 December 1972, suspended following coup of 24 March 1982, restored 10 November 1986, amended many times | present constitution came into force 19 December 1989 |
Country name | conventional long form:
People's Republic of Bangladesh conventional short form: Bangladesh former: East Pakistan |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Montserrat |
Currency | taka (BDT) | East Caribbean dollar (XCD) |
Death rate | 8.6 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 7.47 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $17 billion (2000) | $8.9 million (1997) (1997) |
Dependency status | - | overseas territory of the UK |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Mary Ann PETERS embassy: Road 27, House 110, Banani, Dhaka mailing address: G. P. O. Box 323, Dhaka 1000 telephone: [880] (2) 8824700 through 8824722 FAX: [880] (2) 8823744 |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador-designate A. Tariq KARIM chancery: 3510 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 244-0183 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles and New York |
none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Disputes - international | a portion of the boundary with India is indefinite; exchange of 151 enclaves along border with India subject to ratification by Indian parliament; dispute with India over South Talpatty/New Moore Island | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $1.575 billion (2000 est.) | Country Policy Plan (2001) is a three-year program for spending $122.8 million in British budgetary assistance |
Economy - overview | Despite sustained domestic and international efforts to improve economic and demographic prospects, Bangladesh remains one of the world's poorest, most densely populated, and least developed nations. Although more than half of GDP is generated through the service sector, nearly two-thirds of Bangladeshis are employed in the agriculture sector, with rice as the single most important product. Major impediments to growth include frequent cyclones and floods, inefficient state-owned enterprises, inadequate port facilities, a rapidly growing labor force that cannot be absorbed by agriculture, delays in exploiting energy resources (natural gas), insufficient power supplies, and slow implementation of economic reforms. Reform is stalled in many instances by political infighting and corruption at all levels of government. Even so, Prime Minister Sheikh HASINA's Awami League government has made some headway improving the climate for foreign investors and liberalizing the capital markets. Progress on other economic reforms has been halting because of opposition from the bureaucracy, public sector unions, and other vested interest groups. | Severe volcanic activity, which began in July 1995, has put a damper on this small, open economy. A catastrophic eruption in June 1997 closed the airports and seaports, causing further economic and social dislocation. Two-thirds of the 12,000 inhabitants fled the island. Some began to return in 1998, but lack of housing limited the number. The agriculture sector continued to be affected by the lack of suitable land for farming and the destruction of crops. Prospects for the economy depend largely on developments in relation to the volcano and on public sector construction activity. The UK has launched a three-year $122.8 million aid program to help reconstruct the economy. Half of the island is expected to remain uninhabitable for another decade. |
Electricity - consumption | 11.216 billion kWh (1999) | 4.65 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 12.06 billion kWh (1999) | 5 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
93.7% hydro: 6.3% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Keokradong 1,230 m |
lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Chances Peak (in the Soufriere Hills volcanic complex) 914 m |
Environment - current issues | many people are landless and forced to live on and cultivate flood-prone land; water-borne diseases prevalent in surface water; water pollution, especially of fishing areas, results from the use of commercial pesticides; ground water contaminated by naturally-occurring arsenic; intermittent water shortages because of falling water tables in the northern and central parts of the country; soil degradation and erosion; deforestation; severe overpopulation | land erosion occurs on slopes that have been cleared for cultivation |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
- |
Ethnic groups | Bengali 98%, tribal groups, non-Bengali Muslims (1998) | black, white |
Exchange rates | taka per US dollar - 54.000 (January 2001), 52.142 (2000), 49.085 (1999), 46.906 (1998), 43.892 (1997), 41.794 (1996) | East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Shahabuddin AHMED (since 9 October 1996); 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 Sheikh HASINA (since 13 July 1996) cabinet: Cabinet selected by the prime minister and appointed by the president elections: president elected by National Parliament for a five-year term; election last held 24 July 1996 (next to be held by NA October 2001); following legislative elections, the leader of the party that wins the most seats is usually appointed prime minister by the president election results: Shahabuddin AHMED elected president without opposition; percent of National Parliament vote - NA% |
chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor Anthony LONGRIGG (since NA May 2001)
head of government: Chief Minister John OSBORNE (since 5 April 2001) cabinet: Executive Council consists of the governor, the chief minister, three other ministers, the attorney general, and the finance secretary elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party usually becomes chief minister |
Exports | $5.9 billion (2000) | $1.5 million (1998) |
Exports - commodities | garments, jute and jute goods, leather, frozen fish and seafood | electronic components, plastic bags, apparel, hot peppers, live plants, cattle |
Exports - partners | US 31.2%, Germany 9.95%, UK 8.06%, France 5.82%, Italy 4.42% (1999) | US, Antigua and Barbuda (1993) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | 1 April - 31 March |
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 | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Montserratian coat of arms centered in the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms features a woman standing beside a yellow harp with her arm around a black cross |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $203 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $31 million (1999 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
30% industry: 18% services: 52% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 5%
industry: 14% services: 81% (1996 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,570 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,400 (1999 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.3% (2000 est.) | -1.5% (1999 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 24 00 N, 90 00 E | 16 45 N, 62 12 W |
Geography - note | - | the island is entirely volcanic in origin and contains seven active volcanoes |
Highways | total:
201,182 km paved: 19,112 km unpaved: 182,070 km (1997) |
total: 269 km
paved: 203 km unpaved: 66 km (1995) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
3.9% highest 10%: 28.6% (1995-96 est.) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | transit country for illegal drugs produced in neighboring countries | transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe |
Imports | $8.1 billion (2000) | $26 million (1998) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, chemicals, iron and steel, textiles, raw cotton, food, crude oil and petroleum products, cement | machinery and transportation equipment, foodstuffs, manufactured goods, fuels, lubricants, and related materials |
Imports - partners | India 12.2%, Singapore 7.8%, Japan 6.7%, China 6.4%, US 5.3% (1999) | US, UK, Trinidad and Tobago, Japan, Canada (1993) |
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 | none (overseas territory of the UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 6.1% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Industries | cotton textiles, jute, garments, tea processing, paper newsprint, cement, chemical fertilizer, light engineering, sugar | tourism, rum, textiles, electronic appliances |
Infant mortality rate | 69.85 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 7.98 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5.8% (2000 est.) | 5% (1998) (1998) |
International organization participation | AsDB, C, CCC, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO (pending member), ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OPCW, SAARC, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNTAET, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | Caricom, CDB, ECLAC (associate), ICFTU, Interpol (subbureau), OECS, WCL |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 10 (2000) | 17 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 31,000 sq km (1993 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (the chief justices and other judges are appointed by the president) | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based in Saint Lucia, one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the High Court) |
Labor force | 64.1 million (1998)
note: extensive export of labor to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE, Oman, Qatar, and Malaysia; workers' remittances estimated at $1.71 billion in 1998-99 |
4,521 (1992); note - lowered by flight of people from volcanic activity |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 63%, services 26%, industry 11% (FY95/96) | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% |
Land boundaries | total:
4,246 km border countries: Burma 193 km, India 4,053 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
73% permanent crops: 2% permanent pastures: 5% forests and woodland: 15% other: 5% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 20%
permanent crops: 0% other: 80% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Bangla (official, also known as Bengali), English | English |
Legal system | based on English common law | English common law and statutory law |
Legislative branch | unicameral National Parliament or Jatiya Sangsad (330 seats; 300 elected by popular vote from single territorial constituencies, 30 seats reserved for women; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 12 June 1996 (next to be held before 13 October 2001) election results: percent of vote by party - AL 33.87%, BNP 30.87%; seats by party - AL 178, BNP 113, JP 33, JI 3, other 3; note - the elections of 12 June 1996 brought to power an Awami League government for the first time in twenty-one years; held under a neutral, caretaker administration, the elections were characterized by a peaceful, orderly process and massive voter turnout, ending a bitter two-year impasse between the former BNP and opposition parties that had paralyzed National Parliament and led to widespread street violence |
unicameral Legislative Council (11 seats, 9 popularly elected; members serve five-year terms)
note: expanded in 2001 from 7 to 9 elected members with attorney general and financial secretary sitting as ex-officio members elections: last held NA April 2001 (next to be held by November 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NPLM 7, NPP 2 note: in 2001, the Elections Commission instituted a single constituency/voter-at-large system whereby all eligible voters cast ballots for all nine seats of the Legislative Council |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
60.54 years male: 60.74 years female: 60.33 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 78.2 years
male: 76.1 years female: 80.4 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 56% male: 63% female: 49% (2000 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 97% male: 97% female: 97% (1970 est.) |
Location | Southern Asia, bordering the Bay of Bengal, between Burma and India | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, southeast of Puerto Rico |
Map references | Asia | Central America and the Caribbean |
Maritime claims | contiguous zone:
18 NM continental shelf: up to the outer limits of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 3 NM |
Merchant marine | total:
35 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 268,566 GRT/375,110 DWT ships by type: bulk 2, cargo 25, container 3, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 2 (2000 est.) |
none (2002 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the UK |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Coast Guard, Air Force, paramilitary forces (includes Bangladesh Rifles, Bangladesh Ansars, Village Defense Parties, National Cadet Corps), Armed Police battalions | no regular indigenous military forces; Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $559 million (FY96/97) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.8% (FY96/97) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
36,005,553 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
21,362,279 (2001 est.) |
- |
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 | Birthday of Queen ELIZABETH II, second Saturday in June (1926) |
Nationality | noun:
Bangladeshi(s) adjective: Bangladeshi |
noun: Montserratian(s)
adjective: Montserratian |
Natural hazards | droughts, cyclones; much of the country routinely inundated during the summer monsoon season | severe hurricanes (June to November); volcanic eruptions (Soufriere Hills volcano has erupted continuously since 1996) |
Natural resources | natural gas, arable land, timber, coal | NEGL |
Net migration rate | -0.76 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 74.2 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | natural gas 1,250 km | - |
Political parties and leaders | Awami League or AL [Sheikh HASINA]; Bangladesh Communist Party or BCP [Saifuddin Ahmed MANIK]; Bangladesh Nationalist Party or BNP [Khaleda ZIAur Rahman]; Islami Oikya Jote or IOJ [Azizol HAQ]; Jamaat-E-Islami or JI [Motiur Rahman NIZAMI]; Jatiya Party or JP [Hussain Mohammad ERSHAD] | National Progressive Party or NPP [Reuben T. MEADE]; New People's Liberation Movement or NPLM [John A. OSBORNE] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 131,269,860 (July 2001 est.) | 8,437
note: an estimated 8,000 refugees left the island following the resumption of volcanic activity in July 1995; some have returned (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 35.6% (FY95/96 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.59% (2001 est.) | 8.43% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Chittagong, Dhaka, Mongla Port, Narayanganj (2001) | Plymouth (abandoned), Little Bay (anchorages and ferry landing), Carr's Bay |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 12, FM 12, shortwave 2 (1999) | AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | 6.15 million (1997) | 7,000 (1997) |
Railways | total:
2,745 km broad gauge: 923 km 1.676-m gauge narrow gauge: 1,822 km 1.000-m gauge (2000) |
0 km (2003) |
Religions | Muslim 83%, Hindu 16%, other 1% (1998) | Anglican, Methodist, Roman Catholic, Pentecostal, Seventh-Day Adventist, other Christian denominations |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.19 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.12 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
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: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean); international radiotelephone communications and landline service to neighboring countries (2000) |
general assessment: NA
domestic: NA international: NA |
Telephones - main lines in use | 500,000 (2000) | 4,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 283,000 (2000) | 70 (1994) |
Television broadcast stations | 15 (1999) | 1 (1997) |
Terrain | mostly flat alluvial plain; hilly in southeast | volcanic islands, mostly mountainous, with small coastal lowland |
Total fertility rate | 2.78 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 1.81 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 35.2% (1996) | 6% (1998 est.) |
Waterways | up to 8,046 km depending on season
note: includes 3,058 km main cargo routes |
none |