Bangladesh Profile

About Bangladesh – At a glance :

Official Name	:	The People’s Republic of Bangladesh
Government	:	Parliamentary form of government, headed by Prime Minister
Location & Borders	:	South Asia bordered by India on the east, west & north and by Bay of Bengal on the south and small border strip with Myanmar on the south-east.
Area/Land	:	147,570 square km-mostly alluvial fertile plain. Territorial Waters 22.22 km. Economic Zone up to 370.40 km. in the high seas, measured from the base line.
Climate/Seasons	:	Average winter temp  (Max 29 deg. C and Min 11 deg. C) .  Average Summer temp  ( Max 40 deg. C and Min 21 deg C)  Seasons: Summer, Monsoon, Autumn, Late Autumn, Winter & Spring.
Annual Rainfall	:	Varies from 160 cm to 400 cm at different areas.
Humidity	:	Highest 99 % during peak summer in July, Lowest 36% during winter in Dec-Jan
Standard Time	:	GMT+6 hours
Population/Literacy	:	150.00 million (In 2011)/51.8% (In 2011)
Official Language	:	Bangla, English is generally understood and widely spoken.
Capital	:	Dhaka, Area 1416 sq. km.
Administrative Units	:	Division:7; Zila:64; Thana:507; Union:4484; Village:87319
Major Cities	:	Dhaka, Chittagong, Sylhet, Khulna, Rajshahi, Barisal, Rangpur, Mymensing & Comilla
Airports	:	Dhaka, Chittagong, Sylhet, Jessore, Rajshahi, Iswardi, Cox's Bazar, Syedpur and Barisal.
Intl Airports	:	Dhaka, Sylhet and Chittagong
Sea Ports	:	Chittagong and Mongla
Places of Tourist Interest	:	Colorful tribal life of Hill Tracts, World's largest and longest sea beach at Cox's Bazar, Kuakata and Parky sea beach, Foy's Lake , Dulahajra safari park, Sitakund echo park at Chittagong, century old historical sites at Dhaka, Pharpur, Moinamati, Mohastangar, Sundarban the home of Royal Bengal Tiger and world's largest mangrove forest, lash green tea gardens of Sylhet, reverie life etc.
Tourist Season	:	October to March
Banking Hour	:	Sunday- Thursday (10:00 am – 4:00 pm)
Exchange Rate	:	Taka (T.) / Floating exchange rate hovers round US$ 1.00= Tk. 79, Euro 1.00=Tk 102.00
Religion	:	4 Major religions: Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism and Christianity
GDP/rate of growth	:	6.12% (2013-14)
Per Capita GDP/GNI	:	US$1115/1190(2013-14)
Annual Export/Import	:	US$ 30.18 billion / US$ 36.996 billion (2013-14)
Major Exports	:	Readymade garments, frozen foods (shrimps), leather, leather products, jute, jute products, tea, ceramic, textile fabrics, home textile, chemical product, light engineering products including bi-cycle.
Major Imports	:	Oil, edible oil, petroleum product, wheat, seeds, fertilizer, yarn, capital goods, machinery, power generating machinery, scientific & medical equipment, iron & steel, motor vehicles, raw cotton, chemicals.
Major Trading Partners	:	USA, EU countries, China, India, Pakistan, Japan, South Korea, Canada, Australia, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia and UAE

Location and Physical Features

Bangladesh is situated in the northeastern part of South Asia. It lies between 20~34' and 26~36' north latitude and 88~1' and 92~41' east longitude. The heavy and great Himalayas stand as the northern ramparts, while the southern frontier is guarded by the Bay of Bengal. On the West lies the expansive genetic plains (West Bengal) of India and on the eastern frontier lies the almost impassable forest of Myanmar ( Arakan Province) and India (Tripura and Assam hills). These picturesque geographical boundaries delineate out a low lying plain of about 144,000 sq. KM crises-crossed by innumerable brooks, rivers, rivulets and streams. Mighty rivers the Padma, Jamuna, Meghna, Karnaphuli and others flow through Bangladesh. The unscalable blue is stretched high above, and the green and silvery landscape below runs far beyond. This is Bangladesh, a fertile land where nature is bounteous

Economy

Bangladesh is an agricultural country. The total cultivable area is around 23 million acres and there are a little more than 14.5 million cultivators. Major agricultural products are rice, jute, (the golden fiber), wheat, potato, pulses, sugarcane, tea tobacco etc. The country is the world's largest exporter of jute and jute goods. Tea is also one of the major foreign exchange earners. Bangladesh also exports frozen shrimps, frog legs and handicrafts. There has also been a rapid growth in manufacturing industries, which offer a wide range of exportable goods such as leather goods and ready-made garments. Within the last few years' remittances from Bangladeshis employed abroad have contributed largely toward foreign exchange earnings

Climate and Seasons

The climate is sub-tropical with temperatures ranging from a daytime low 18~ C in the cold season to a maximum of 40~ C in the summer. Annual rainfall ranges from 160-cm. To 2000 cm in west, 200 cm to 400 cm, in the south-east and 250 cm. to 400 cm. in the north-east mainly in monsoon. The country has mainly four seasons, winter (Dec- Feb), summer (Mar-May), Monsoon (June-Sep) and Autumn (Oct-Nov). The winter is the most pleasant season when average maximum and minimum temperatures and 26.6~ C and 13.5~ C respectively.

Demography

Bangladesh has got a population of about 140 million, making it the most densely populated country in the world, 85% live in rural areas. Density of population per sq. km is 764. There are about a million tribal people. They live in the hilly regions of Sylhet, Mymensingh, Rangamati, Khagrachari and Bandarban. The citizens of Bangladesh are known as Bangladeshi. Bangladeshis are simple, polite and courteous. They are friendly and hospitable towards visitors.

Language

The state language and mother tongue is Bangla. English is also spoken and understood.

Religion

Bangladesh is a land of religious freedom and tolerance. People of all caste, creed and religion live here in perfect harmony. Approximate ratio of population on the basis of religion is as follows: Muslims 86.6%, Hindus 12.1%, Buddhists 0.6%, Christian 0.4% and other 0.3%.

Transportation

Air : Bangladesh can be reached by air from any part of the world. Biman Bangladesh Airline connects Dhaka with 29 major cities of the world. It also operates in 7 domestic routes. Beside Biman, several Leading International carriers fly to and from Dhaka.

Rail : The Bangladesh Railway provides an service to please of interest such as Chittagong, Sylhet, Khulna, Mymensingh, Bogra, Rajshahi, Dinajpur starting from Dhaka, The inter city Express service is available to and from important cities at cheap fares.

Bus/Coach Services : Road transport in Bangladesh is predominantly a private sector affair. Rates are among the cheapest in the world. Express and non-stop services are available to principal towns from bus terminals in Dhaka. The Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation (BRTC) also maintains a country-wide network of bus service.

General Information

Wearing apparel:	Tropical in summer and light woolen in winter.
Currency:	Taka (TK) is the unit of currency.  The taka is equal to 100 paisa (smallest unit). Notes of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 and 500 taka and  coins of 5, 10, 25, 50, 100 and 500 paisa are in circulation.
Banking hours:	9.00 am -5.00 pm on Sunday - Wednesday Thursday  9.00 am - 2.00 pm Closed on Friday & Saturday.
Time difference:	GMT 6+
Working Hours:	Office House 9.00 am - 5.00 pm.

Investment Opportunity in Bangladesh

Private investment from overseas countries is welcome in all most all areas of the economy. Such investment can be made either independently or through joint venture on mutually beneficial terms and conditions. In other words, 100 percent foreign investment is, however, specially desirable in the following areas:

1. Export - oriented industries;
2. Industries in the export processing zones;
3. High technology products which are either import - substitutes or export-oriented;
4. Undertaking in which more diversified use of indigenous natural resources is possible;
5. Basic industries, depending mainly on local raw materials;
6. Investment towards improvements in quality and marketing of goods manufactured and or ncrease f production capacities of existing industries;
7. Labour intensive/technology intensive/capital intensive industries

Visiting Bangladesh

Visit to Bangladesh is not a problem at all. The people of Bangladesh are extremely friendly and accept the visitor cordially. Hospitality is a age old traditional of Bangladesh. To Visit Bangladesh the following documentation are required:

1. One can obtain for visa before departure from Bangladesh Embassy/High Commission.
2. Provision for obtaining visa for short visit are also available at Zia International Airport