Bangladesh (2001) | Nigeria (2006) | |
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Administrative divisions | 5 divisions; Barisal, Chittagong, Dhaka, Khulna, Rajshahi; note - there may be one additional division named Sylhet | 36 states and 1 territory*; Abia, Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Edo, Ekiti, Enugu, Federal Capital Territory*, Gombe, Imo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Lagos, Nassarawa, Niger, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Oyo, Plateau, Rivers, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe, Zamfara |
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: 42.3% (male 28,089,017/female 27,665,212)
15-64 years: 54.6% (male 36,644,885/female 35,405,915) 65 years and over: 3.1% (male 1,930,007/female 2,124,695) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | rice, jute, tea, wheat, sugarcane, potatoes, tobacco, pulses, oilseeds, spices, fruit; beef, milk, poultry | cocoa, peanuts, palm oil, corn, rice, sorghum, millet, cassava (tapioca), yams, rubber; cattle, sheep, goats, pigs; timber; fish |
Airports | 18 (2000 est.) | 69 (2006) |
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.) |
total: 36
over 3,047 m: 6 2,438 to 3,047 m: 12 1,524 to 2,437 m: 10 914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 2 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
total: 33
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 18 (2006) |
Area | total:
144,000 sq km land: 133,910 sq km water: 10,090 sq km |
total: 923,768 sq km
land: 910,768 sq km water: 13,000 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Wisconsin | slightly more than twice the size of California |
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. | British influence and control over what would become Nigeria grew through the 19th century. A series of constitutions after World War II granted Nigeria greater autonomy; independence came in 1960. Following nearly 16 years of military rule, a new constitution was adopted in 1999, and a peaceful transition to civilian government was completed. The president faces the daunting task of reforming a petroleum-based economy, whose revenues have been squandered through corruption and mismanagement, and institutionalizing democracy. In addition, the OBASANJO administration must defuse longstanding ethnic and religious tensions, if it is to build a sound foundation for economic growth and political stability. Although the April 2003 elections were marred by some irregularities, Nigeria is currently experiencing its longest period of civilian rule since independence. |
Birth rate | 25.3 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 40.43 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$4.9 billion expenditures: $6.8 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY99/00 est.) |
revenues: $12.86 billion
expenditures: $13.54 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.) |
Capital | Dhaka | name: Abuja
geographic coordinates: 9 12 N, 7 11 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Climate | tropical; mild winter (October to March); hot, humid summer (March to June); humid, warm rainy monsoon (June to October) | varies; equatorial in south, tropical in center, arid in north |
Coastline | 580 km | 853 km |
Constitution | 4 November 1972, effective 16 December 1972, suspended following coup of 24 March 1982, restored 10 November 1986, amended many times | new constitution adopted May 1999 |
Country name | conventional long form:
People's Republic of Bangladesh conventional short form: Bangladesh former: East Pakistan |
conventional long form: Federal Republic of Nigeria
conventional short form: Nigeria |
Currency | taka (BDT) | - |
Death rate | 8.6 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 16.94 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $17 billion (2000) | $32.45 billion (2005 est.) |
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 |
chief of mission: Ambassador John CAMPBELL
embassy: 7 Mambilla Drive, Abuja mailing address: P. O. Box 554, Lagos telephone: [234] (9) 523-0916/0906/5857/2235/2205 FAX: [234] (9) 523-0353 |
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 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Professor George A. OBIOZOR
chancery: 3519 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 986-8400 FAX: [1] (202) 775-1385 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, New York |
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 | ICJ ruled in 2002 on the entire Cameroon-Nigeria land and maritime boundary but the parties formed a Joint Border Commission to resolve differences bilaterally and have commenced with demarcation in less-contested sections of the boundary, starting in Lake Chad in the north; following the UN-brokered Greentree Agreement of 12 June 2006, Nigeria, in completion of the 2002 ICJ decision on the Cameroon-Nigerian land boundary, handed sovereignty of the Bakassi peninsula to Cameroon on 14 August; all Nigerian military forces have reportedly withdrawn from the region but Nigeria will continue to maintain a police and administrative presence in the southeastern "transition zone" for a period of up to two years; Nigeria pledges to provide for the resettlement of those Bakassi residents who wish to remain Nigerian citizens; the ICJ ruled on an equidistance settlement of Cameroon-Equatorial Guinea-Nigeria maritime boundary in the Gulf of Guinea, but imprecisely defined coordinates in the ICJ decision and a sovereignty dispute between Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon over an island at the mouth of the Ntem River all contribute to the delay in implementation; a joint task force was established in 2004 that resolved disputes over and redrew the maritime and the 870-km land boundary with Benin on the Okpara River; only Nigeria and Cameroon have heeded the Lake Chad Commission's admonition to ratify the delimitation treaty which also includes the Chad-Niger and Niger-Nigeria boundaries |
Economic aid - recipient | $1.575 billion (2000 est.) | IMF, $250 million (1998) |
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. | Oil-rich Nigeria, long hobbled by political instability, corruption, inadequate infrastructure, and poor macroeconomic management, is undertaking some reforms under a new reform-minded administration. Nigeria's former military rulers failed to diversify the economy away from its overdependence on the capital-intensive oil sector, which provides 20% of GDP, 95% of foreign exchange earnings, and about 65% of budgetary revenues. The largely subsistence agricultural sector has failed to keep up with rapid population growth - Nigeria is Africa's most populous country - and the country, once a large net exporter of food, now must import food. Following the signing of an IMF stand-by agreement in August 2000, Nigeria received a debt-restructuring deal from the Paris Club and a $1 billion credit from the IMF, both contingent on economic reforms. Nigeria pulled out of its IMF program in April 2002, after failing to meet spending and exchange rate targets, making it ineligible for additional debt forgiveness from the Paris Club. In the last year the government has begun showing the political will to implement the market-oriented reforms urged by the IMF, such as to modernize the banking system, to curb inflation by blocking excessive wage demands, and to resolve regional disputes over the distribution of earnings from the oil industry. In 2003, the government began deregulating fuel prices, announced the privatization of the country's four oil refineries, and instituted the National Economic Empowerment Development Strategy, a domestically designed and run program modeled on the IMF's Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility for fiscal and monetary management. GDP rose strongly in 2005, based largely on increased oil exports and high global crude prices. In November 2005, Abuja won Paris Club approval for a historic debt-relief deal that by March 2006 should eliminate $30 billion worth of Nigeria's total $37 billion external debt. The deal first requires that Nigeria repay roughly $12 billion in arrears to its bilateral creditors. Nigeria would then be allowed to buy back its remaining debt stock at a discount. The deal also commits Nigeria to more intensified IMF reviews. |
Electricity - consumption | 11.216 billion kWh (1999) | 14.46 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 40 million kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | 12.06 billion kWh (1999) | 15.59 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
93.7% hydro: 6.3% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Keokradong 1,230 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Chappal Waddi 2,419 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 | soil degradation; rapid deforestation; urban air and water pollution; desertification; oil pollution - water, air, and soil; has suffered serious damage from oil spills; loss of arable land; rapid urbanization |
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 |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Bengali 98%, tribal groups, non-Bengali Muslims (1998) | Nigeria, Africa's most populous country, is composed of more than 250 ethnic groups; the following are the most populous and politically influential: Hausa and Fulani 29%, Yoruba 21%, Igbo (Ibo) 18%, Ijaw 10%, Kanuri 4%, Ibibio 3.5%, Tiv 2.5% |
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) | nairas per US dollar - 132.59 (2005), 132.89 (2004), 129.22 (2003), 120.58 (2002), 111.23 (2001) |
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: President Olusegun OBASANJO (since 29 May 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Olusegun OBASANJO (since 29 May 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Federal Executive Council elections: president is elected by popular vote for a four-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 19 April 2003 (next to be held April 2007) election results: Olusegun OBASANJO elected president; percent of vote - Olusegun OBASANJO (PDP) 61.9%, Muhammadu BUHARI (ANPP) 31.2%, Chukwuemeka Odumegwu OJUKWU (APGA) 3.3%, other 3.6% |
Exports | $5.9 billion (2000) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | garments, jute and jute goods, leather, frozen fish and seafood | petroleum and petroleum products 95%, cocoa, rubber |
Exports - partners | US 31.2%, Germany 9.95%, UK 8.06%, France 5.82%, Italy 4.42% (1999) | US 49.7%, Brazil 10.4%, Spain 7.6% (2005) |
Fiscal year | 1 July - 30 June | calendar year |
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 | three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and green |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $203 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
30% industry: 18% services: 52% (2000 est.) |
agriculture: 26.9%
industry: 48.7% services: 24.4% (2005 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $1,570 (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.3% (2000 est.) | 6.9% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 24 00 N, 90 00 E | 10 00 N, 8 00 E |
Geography - note | - | the Niger enters the country in the northwest and flows southward through tropical rain forests and swamps to its delta in the Gulf of Guinea |
Heliports | - | 1 (2006) |
Highways | total:
201,182 km paved: 19,112 km unpaved: 182,070 km (1997) |
- |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
3.9% highest 10%: 28.6% (1995-96 est.) |
lowest 10%: 1.6%
highest 10%: 40.8% (1996-97) |
Illicit drugs | transit country for illegal drugs produced in neighboring countries | a transit point for heroin and cocaine intended for European, East Asian, and North American markets; safehaven for Nigerian narcotraffickers operating worldwide; major money-laundering center; massive corruption and criminal activity; Nigeria has improved some anti-money-laundering controls, resulting in its removal from the Financial Action Task Force's (FATF's) Noncooperative Countries and Territories List in June 2006; Nigeria's anti-money-laundering regime continues to be monitored by FATF |
Imports | $8.1 billion (2000) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, chemicals, iron and steel, textiles, raw cotton, food, crude oil and petroleum products, cement | machinery, chemicals, transport equipment, manufactured goods, food and live animals |
Imports - partners | India 12.2%, Singapore 7.8%, Japan 6.7%, China 6.4%, US 5.3% (1999) | China 10.4%, US 7.3%, UK 6.7%, Netherlands 6%, France 5.9%, Germany 4.2% (2005) |
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 | 1 October 1960 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 6.1% (2000 est.) | 3.8% (2005 est.) |
Industries | cotton textiles, jute, garments, tea processing, paper newsprint, cement, chemical fertilizer, light engineering, sugar | crude oil, coal, tin, columbite; palm oil, peanuts, cotton, rubber, wood; hides and skins, textiles, cement and other construction materials, food products, footwear, chemicals, fertilizer, printing, ceramics, steel, small commercial ship construction and repair |
Infant mortality rate | 69.85 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 97.14 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 104.05 deaths/1,000 live births female: 90.02 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 5.8% (2000 est.) | 13.5% (2005 est.) |
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 | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, ECOWAS, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC, ONUB, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNMOVIC, UNOCI, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 10 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 31,000 sq km (1993 est.) | 2,820 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (the chief justices and other judges are appointed by the president) | Supreme Court (judges appointed by the President); Federal Court of Appeal (judges are appointed by the federal government on the advice of the Advisory Judicial Committee) |
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 |
57.21 million (2005 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 63%, services 26%, industry 11% (FY95/96) | agriculture: 70%
industry: 10% services: 20% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | total:
4,246 km border countries: Burma 193 km, India 4,053 km |
total: 4,047 km
border countries: Benin 773 km, Cameroon 1,690 km, Chad 87 km, Niger 1,497 km |
Land use | arable land:
73% permanent crops: 2% permanent pastures: 5% forests and woodland: 15% other: 5% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 33.02%
permanent crops: 3.14% other: 63.84% (2005) |
Languages | Bangla (official, also known as Bengali), English | English (official), Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo (Ibo), Fulani |
Legal system | based on English common law | based on English common law, Islamic Shariah law (in 12 northern states), and traditional law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
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 |
bicameral National Assembly consists of Senate (109 seats - 3 from each state plus 1 from Abuja, members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and House of Representatives (360 seats, members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 12 April 2003 (next to be held in 2007); House of Representatives - last held 12 April 2003 (next to be held in 2007) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - PDP 53.7%, ANPP 27.9%, AD 9.7%; seats by party - PDP 76, ANPP 27, AD 6; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - PDP 54.5%, ANPP 27.4%, AD 8.8%, other 9.3%; seats by party - PDP 223, ANPP 96, AD 34, other 6; note - one seat is vacant |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
60.54 years male: 60.74 years female: 60.33 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 47.08 years
male: 46.52 years female: 47.66 years (2006 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 can read and write
total population: 68% male: 75.7% female: 60.6% (2003 est.) |
Location | Southern Asia, bordering the Bay of Bengal, between Burma and India | Western Africa, bordering the Gulf of Guinea, between Benin and Cameroon |
Map references | Asia | Africa |
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 |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
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.) |
total: 52 ships (1000 GRT or over) 277,709 GRT/475,414 DWT
by type: cargo 6, chemical tanker 5, combination ore/oil 1, liquefied gas 1, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 36, specialized tanker 2 foreign-owned: 4 (Norway 1, Pakistan 1, Singapore 1, Spain 1) registered in other countries: 28 (Bahamas 2, Bermuda 11, Cambodia 2, Comoros 2, Panama 7, Poland 1, Seychelles 1, unknown 2) (2006) |
Military branches | Army, Navy, Coast Guard, Air Force, paramilitary forces (includes Bangladesh Rifles, Bangladesh Ansars, Village Defense Parties, National Cadet Corps), Armed Police battalions | Nigerian Armed Forces (Forces Armees Nigeriennes, FAN): Army, Niger Air Force (2006) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $559 million (FY96/97) | $737.6 million (2005 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.8% (FY96/97) | 0.8% (2005 est.) |
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 | Independence Day (National Day), 1 October (1960) |
Nationality | noun:
Bangladeshi(s) adjective: Bangladeshi |
noun: Nigerian(s)
adjective: Nigerian |
Natural hazards | droughts, cyclones; much of the country routinely inundated during the summer monsoon season | periodic droughts; flooding |
Natural resources | natural gas, arable land, timber, coal | natural gas, petroleum, tin, iron ore, coal, limestone, niobium, lead, zinc, arable land |
Net migration rate | -0.76 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0.27 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Pipelines | natural gas 1,250 km | condensate 126 km; gas 2,812 km; liquid petroleum gas 125 km; oil 4,278 km; refined products 3,517 km (2006) |
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] | Alliance for Democracy or AD [Mojisoluwa AKINFENWA]; All Nigeria Peoples' Party or ANPP [Don ETIEBET]; All Progressives Grand Alliance or APGA [disputed leadership]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Aliyu Habu FARI]; Peoples Democratic Party or PDP [Dr. Ahmadu ALI]; Peoples Redemption Party or PRP [Abdulkadir Balarabe MUSA]; Peoples Salvation Party or PSP [Lawal MAITURARE]; United Nigeria Peoples Party or UNPP [disputed leadership] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 131,269,860 (July 2001 est.) | 131,859,731
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 35.6% (FY95/96 est.) | 60% (2000 est.) |
Population growth rate | 1.59% (2001 est.) | 2.38% (2006 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Chittagong, Dhaka, Mongla Port, Narayanganj (2001) | - |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 12, FM 12, shortwave 2 (1999) | AM 83, FM 36, shortwave 11 (2001) |
Radios | 6.15 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
2,745 km broad gauge: 923 km 1.676-m gauge narrow gauge: 1,822 km 1.000-m gauge (2000) |
total: 3,505 km
narrow gauge: 3,505 km 1.067-m gauge (2005) |
Religions | Muslim 83%, Hindu 16%, other 1% (1998) | Muslim 50%, Christian 40%, indigenous beliefs 10% |
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: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.91 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2006 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: expansion and modernization of the fixed-line telephone network has been slow due to faltering efforts at privatization
domestic: the addition of a second fixed-line provider in 2002 resulted in faster growth in this service; wireless telephony has grown rapidly, in part responding to the shortcomings of the fixed-line network; four wireless (GSM) service providers operate nationally; the combined growth resulted in a sharp increase in teledensity reported to be over 18% in March 2006 international: country code - 234; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean); fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia |
Telephones - main lines in use | 500,000 (2000) | 1,223,300 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 283,000 (2000) | 21,571,131 (2006) |
Television broadcast stations | 15 (1999) | 3 (the government controls 2 of the broadcasting stations and 15 repeater stations) (2002) |
Terrain | mostly flat alluvial plain; hilly in southeast | southern lowlands merge into central hills and plateaus; mountains in southeast, plains in north |
Total fertility rate | 2.78 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 5.49 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 35.2% (1996) | 2.9% (2005 est.) |
Waterways | up to 8,046 km depending on season
note: includes 3,058 km main cargo routes |
8,600 km (Niger and Benue rivers and smaller rivers and creeks) (2005) |