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 floods annually during the monsoon rainy season, hampering economic development. Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Iowa.
Natural hazards: droughts, cyclones; much of the country routinely inundated during the summer monsoon season.
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.
Population: 144,319,628 (July 2005 est.) Age structure: 0-14 years: 33.1% (male 24,590,207/female 23,162,420) 15-64 years: 63.5% (male 46,764,824/female 44,868,733)
Despite sustained domestic and international efforts to improve economic and demographic prospects, Bangladesh remains a poor, overpopulated, and ill-governed nation. Although 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. Economic reform is stalled in many instances by political infighting and corruption at all levels of government. Progress also has been blocked by opposition from the bureaucracy, public sector unions, and other vested interest groups. The BNP government, led by Prime Minister Khaleda ZIA, has the parliamentary strength to push through needed reforms, but the party's political will to do so has been lacking in key areas. One encouraging note: growth has been a steady 5% for the past several years. 65 years and over: 3.4% (male 2,650,683/female 2,282,761) (2005 est.) Median age: total: 21.87 years male: 21.88 years female: 21.85 years (2005 est.) Population growth rate: 2.09% (2005 est.) Birth rate: 30.01 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) Death rate: 8.4 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) Net migration rate: -0.69 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Poster Comment:
Bangladesh was formed in 1971 after a successful revolt from West Pakistan. All you need to know about the country is that there are 144,319,628 people living in less space than the state of Iowa. The CIA did not mention a recent Indian Supreme Court ruling making it easier for government officials in that country to deport illegal aliens back to Bangladesh. There are 20,000,000 Bangladeshi illegal aliens living in India. Can you imagine a place smaller than Iowa producing 20,000,000 illegal aliens? Can you imagine 25,000,000 people in Des Moines? 144,000,000 in Iowa? All you need to know about immigration is that there more than one hundred nations in this world that are impoverished and overpopulated. They will continue to send us legal and illegal immigrants until the Congress listens to the people who overwhelmingly want this to stop. I have a Hindu friend who told me that America could easily support a population of one billion people. I think the world will be blown up long before that happens.