than 500 (2007 est.) country comparison to the world: 82
Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A and E, and typhoid fever
vectorborne diseases: dengue fever and malaria are high risks in some locations
water contact disease: leptospirosis
animal contact disease: rabies
note: highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza has been identified in this country; it poses a negligible risk with extremely rare cases possible among US citizens who have close contact with birds (2009)
Nationality:
noun: Bangladeshi(s)
adjective: Bangladeshi
Ethnic groups:
Bengali 98%, other 2% (includes tribal groups, non-Bengali Muslims) (1998)
Religions:
Muslim 89.5%, Hindu 9.6%, other 0.9% (2004)
Languages:
Bangla (official, also known as Bengali), English
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 47.9%
male: 54%
female: 41.4% (2001 Census)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
total: 8 years
male: 8 years
female: 8 years (2007)
Education expenditures:
2.4% of GDP (2008) country comparison to the world: 163
Government ::Bangladesh
Country name:
conventional long form: People's Republic of Bangladesh
conventional short form: Bangladesh
local long form: Gana Prajatantri Bangladesh
local short form:
former: East Bengal, East Pakistan
Government type:
parliamentary democracy
Capital:
name: Dhaka
geographic coordinates: 23 43 N, 90 24 E
time difference: UTC+6 (11 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Administrative divisions:
7 divisions; Barisal, Chittagong, Dhaka, Khulna, Rajshahi, Rangpur, Sylhet
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
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
Constitution:
4 November 1972; effective 16 December 1972; suspended following coup of 24 March 1982; restored 10 November 1986; amended many times
Legal system:
based on English common law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Zillur RAHMAN (since 12 February 2009)
head of government: Prime Minister Sheikh HASINA Wajed (since 6 January 2009)
cabinet: Cabinet selected by the prime minister and appointed by the president (For more information visit the World Leaders website ) elections: president elected by National Parliament for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); last election held on 11 February 2009 (next to be held in 2014)
election results: Zillur RAHMAN declared president-elect by the Election Commission on 11 February 2009 (sworn in on 12 February); he ran unopposed as president; percent of National Parliament vote - NA
Legislative branch:
unicameral National Parliament or Jatiya Sangsad; 300 seats elected by popular vote from single territorial constituencies; members serve five-year terms
elections: last held on 29 December 2008 (next to be held in 2013)
election results: percent of vote by party - AL 49%, BNP 33.2%, JP 7%, JIB 4.6%, other 6.2%; seats by party - AL 230, BNP 30, JP 27, JIB 2, other 11
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court (the chief justices and other judges are appointed by the president)
Political parties and leaders:
Awami League or AL [Sheikh HASINA]; Bangladesh Communist Party or
BCP [Manjurul A. KHAN]; Bangladesh Nationalist Party or BNP [Khaleda
ZIA]; Bikalpa Dhara Bangladesh or BDB [Badrudozza CHOWDHURY]; Islami
Oikya Jote or IOJ [multiple leaders]; Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh or
JIB [Matiur Rahman NIZAMI]; Jatiya Party or JP (Ershad faction)
[Hussain Mohammad ERSHAD]; Liberal Democratic Party or LDP [Oli
AHMED]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Advocacy to End Gender-based Violence through the MoWCA (Ministry of
Women's and Children's Affairs)
other: environmentalists; Islamist groups; religious leaders; teachers; union leaders
International organization participation:
ADB, ARF, BIMSTEC, C, CICA (observer), CP, D-8, FAO, G-77, IAEA,
IBRD,
