Bangladesh

Official Sites of Bangladesh



Bangladesh's "House of the Nation," the Shangshad Bhaban, the parliament complex located at Sher-e-Bangla Nagar, a Dhaka neighborhood.
Image: Aminul joy


Politics of Bangladesh
Bangladesh is a parliamentary representative democratic republic with a multi-party system. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the parliament (Jatiyo Sangsad). Head of state is the President. Head of government is the Prime Minister. Bangladesh is a republic with a non-executive president. Executive power is exercised by the government.


Note: External links will open in a new browser window.


Government
Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh
Bangladesh's official homepage.

Bangladesh Jatiya Sangsad
The Bangladesh Parliament.

Prime Minister's Office
Official site of the Prime Minister Office.

Bangladesh Ministry of Foreign Affairs
The official home page of the ministry.

Diplomatic Missions
Permanent Mission of Bangladesh to the United Nations
Bangladesh's representation to the UN.
Embassy of Bangladesh in the U.S.
Washington DC, USA
Bangladesh's Diplomatic Missions Abroad
Address list of Bangladesh's Diplomatic Missions Abroad.
Foreign Missions in Bangladesh
Addresses of Foreign Missions in Bangladesh.

Statistics
Bureau of Statistics
National Statistical Office of Bangladesh.

Bangladesh in Figures
Bangladesh key statistical data.



The Jatiyo Smriti Soudho, Bangladesh's National Martyrs' Memorial, a concrete modernist monument and memorial gardens in Dhaka in central Bangladesh.
Image: Rubaiath Shaon

 

Maps of Bangladesh



Map of Bangladesh (click the map to enlarge)
Image: © nationsonline.org

Maps

Political Map of Bangladesh
Political Map of Bangladesh.

Administrative Map of Bangladesh
Administrative Map of Bangladesh.

Google Earth Map Bangladesh
Searchable map and satellite view of Bangladesh.

Google Earth Map Dhaka
Searchable map and satellite view of Bangladesh's capital city.

Map of Southeast Asia
Map of the Southeast Asia region.

Map of Asia
Political Map of Asia.

 

Bangladesh News






Bangladesh Media Landscape
The emergence of satellite television and the spread of the internet in the last 15 years have changed Bangladesh's media landscape.
Television is the most popular medium. The state-owned BTV has a nationwide terrestrial broadcast, and the private satellite channels and news-based television stations are widely available.
But the media tend to be polarized and aligned with one or the other main political faction. Bangladesh authorities are arbitrarily arresting government critics under the draconian Digital Security Act, stifling civil society, independent media, and human rights activists.
Sources: BBC, Media Landscapes, Reporters Without Borders, HRW

Online News from Bangladesh

News Agencies
Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS)
The national news agency, Dhaka.
United News of Bangladesh
Bangladesh's private news agency was established in 1988.


Bangladesh Online News

News From Bangladesh (NFB)
NFB is a Bangladesh news monitoring service in English.
bdnews24.com
Bangladesh online news portal in English.
The Daily Observer
The Daily Observer is a popular daily newspaper in Bangladesh.
The Daily Star
Bangladeshi daily newspaper on the internet, Dhaka.
Dhaka Tribune
English-language broadsheet daily newspaper published in Dhaka.
The Financial Express
English-language business daily published from Dhaka.
The Independent
Bangladesh online news daily.
New Age
Online edition of the Dhaka-based English language daily newspaper.
The New Nation
The New Nation is the oldest English daily of Bangladesh.


Bengali Newspapers (in Bangla)

The Daily Ittefaq
The Daily Ittefaq is the country's oldest newspaper and one of Bangladesh's largest-circulation newspapers.
Jugantor
The Daily Jugantor is a Bengali language newspaper with its headquarters in Dhaka.
Kaler Kantho
Kaler Kantho is a popular Bengali daily.
Manab Zamin
Manab Zamin is a major Bangla daily tabloid newspaper in Bangladesh, published from Dhaka.
Prothom Alo
Prothom Alo is a major Bengali language daily newspaper published from Dhaka.

Radio/TV
Betar-Radio Bangladesh
Government-run radio network from Dhaka with local services.

Bangladesh Television (BTV)
Government-friendly and sole terrestrial TV channel and hence most popular.


International News Sources for Bangladesh

Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera news from Bangladesh

The Guardian - Bangladesh
Bangladesh related news from The Guardian (UK).

Netra News
Netra News is a Sweden-based investigative and public interest journalism website primarily focusing on Bangladesh. Authorities in Dhaka have made the investigative journalism website inaccessible in Bangladesh.

 

Arts & Culture of Bangladesh



Floats at Mangal Shobhajatra, a festive, colorful parade in Dhaka and one of the traditional events in the city during the Bengali New Year, organized by the teachers and students of the Faculty of Fine Arts of Dhaka University.
Image: Abidhasan00

Arts & Culture

Bangladesh National Museum
Disappointing online presence of the National Museum of Bangladesh.

Banglapedia - the National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh
Banglapedia is the most comprehensive reference work to date on Bangladesh from high antiquity to the present.

Bangla Showbiz
Entertainment and Celebrity Gossip.

Cinema of Bangladesh
Wikipedia article about Dhallywood, the Bengali-language film industry based in Dhaka.

ICE Today
A Bangladeshi fashion, entertainment & lifestyle magazine.

Kazi Nazrul Islam
Wikipedia article about Kazi Nazrul Islam (24 May 1899- 29 August 1976), the Bengali poet, writer, musician, and revolutionary and Bangladesh's national poet.

The Ricksha Arts of Bangladesh
The original site dedicated to one of Bangladesh's unique popular arts vanished in one of the black holes of the internet, replaced by advertising for a Utah based escort service; what remains is the dying art documented at Wikipedia.

Shital Pati weaving
Shital Pati is the traditional art of making a handcrafted mat by weaving together strips of a green cane known as 'Murta'. The mat is used by people all over Bangladesh as a sitting mat, bedspread or prayer mat.

Traditional art of Jamdani weaving
Jamdani is a sheer cotton fabric, traditionally woven on a handloom by craftspeople and apprentices around Dhaka. In the West, jamdani textiles, known as muslin, combine an intricate design with muted or bright colors, and the finished garments are very breathable. In the Mughal period (1526–1707), the finest jamdanis were produced at Dacca (today Dhaka), Bengal.



Muslim Lady Reclining; a woman in fine Bengali muslin.
Anno 1789, oil on canvas painting by Francesco Renaldi 
 

Business & Economy of Bangladesh


A major garment factory in Bangladesh.
Image: Fahad Faisal

Bangladesh Economy

Bangladesh is one of the world's emerging and fastest-growing economies. The country has cut extreme poverty in half and achieved lower-middle-income status. Life expectancy, literacy rates and per capita food production have increased significantly. Its economy has grown roughly 6% per year since 2005 despite prolonged periods of political instability, poor infrastructure, endemic corruption, insufficient power supplies, and slow implementation of economic reforms. About 39 million people (23%) are still living below the national poverty line.

The economy of Bangladesh is largely dependent on agriculture, especially rice. However, the garment (RMG) sector of Bangladesh has become the largest earner of foreign exchange. RMG is the largest employer of women in Bangladesh. Garment exports, the backbone of Bangladesh's industrial sector, accounted for more than 80% of total exports and surpassed $25 billion in 2015.


Central Bank of Bangladesh
Official website offers national economic data, periodical reposts, currency museum, notifications, press releases.

Dhaka Stock Exchange
Official website of the Dhaka stock exchange.

Chittagong Stock Exchange
Bangladesh's second stock exchange, located in the port city of Chittagong.

Bangladesh Export Processing Zone Authority
BEPZA is a government agency whose mission is to manage the various export processing zones (EPZs) in Bangladesh.

Dhaka Chamber of Commerce & Industry (DCCI)
DCCI is the largest business chamber in Bangladesh.



Major Companies in Bangladesh
Small, medium and large family-owned conglomerates dominate Bangladesh's economy. Some of the important players are listed below.

ACI Limited
Advanced Chemical Industries Ltd. is one of the large conglomerates in Bangladesh; it deals in pharmaceuticals, consumer brands, and agribusiness.

A.K. Khan & Company Ltd.
A.K. Khan & Company Ltd. is another big Bangladeshi conglomerate headquartered in Chittagong. A.K. does business in everything from insurance and finance to textiles, telecommunications and deep-sea fishing.

Bashundhara Group
The Bashundhara Group, a large industrial conglomerate headquartered in Dhaka, owns more than 40 major companies in as many industrial sectors.

Bitopi Group

Computer Network Systems Ltd. (CNS)
CNS is a Bangladeshi multinational provider of ICT Services to the government.

Habib Group
Bangladeshi industrial conglomerate is headquartered in Chittagong that produces and markets a variety of products and has business interests in textiles, aviation, cement, steel, real estate, insurance and banking.

PHP Family
PHP Family is a leading business conglomerate in Bangladesh. According to its website, PHP Ship Breaking and Recycling Industries Limited is the only ship recycling facility in Bangladesh that meets the requirements of the Hong Kong International Convention.

PRAN Foods Ltd
PRAN Foods Ltd is Bangladesh's largest grower and processor of fruits and vegetables. PRAN-RFL Group is one of the largest conglomerates in the country and the largest agribusiness in Bangladesh.

PriyoShop.com
PriyoShop.com is a Dhaka based eCommerce platform and online shopping site.

Walton Group
Walton is a Bangladeshi conglomerate based in Gazipur that manufactures electronics, computers, automobiles and telecommunications products.


List of companies of Bangladesh
Wikipedia list of companies based in Bangladesh.

MediaBangladesh.net
English language Bangladesh Business Directory.


Transportation

Airlines
Biman Bangladesh Airlines
Biman Bangladesh Airlines is the national flag carrier of Bangladesh and the country's largest public limited company. The airline has its main hub at Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka.
Novoair
Novoair is based at Shahjalal International Airport and offers mainly domestic flights and a connection to Kolkata (India).
Regent Airways
Bangladeshi airline flies to some major cities in Asia and operates domestic flights between Dhaka, Cox's Bazar, and Chattogram (Chittagong).
US-Bangla Airlines
US-Bangla Airlines is Bangladesh's largest private airline.

Defunct airlines
GMG Airlines
Bangladesh's leading private domestic airline ceased operations in March 2012.
United Airways
The second private airline in Bangladesh ceased operations in 2016.
 

Railway
Bangladesh Railway
Bangladesh Railway is the state-owned railroad transport company of Bangladesh; it operates and maintains all railroads in the country.

Ports
Chittagong Port Authority
The Port of Chittagong is Bangladesh's main seaport. The port is located in Bandar Thana on the bank of the Karnaphuli River. The port city of Chittagong (officially Chattogram) at the Bay of Bengal handles about 90% of Bangladesh's export-import trade.

Matarbari Port
Matarbari Port is a deep-sea port under construction in Maheshkhali in Cox's Bazar District. The first deep-sea port of the country will be operational by the end of 2025.



Parabat Express train in Sylhet Railway Station. The Parabat Express intercity runs between Dhaka and Sylhet in northeastern Bangladesh.
Image: Ifthekhar Omer
 

Tourism in Bangladesh



The 18 km (11 mi) long and in places 3 km (1.9 mi) wide Kuakata Beach is located at the end of a headland in southeastern Bangladesh. Kuakata is known as the "Daughter of the Sea" in Bangladesh.
Image: Fahimrb

Destination Bangladesh - Travel and Tour Guides

Discover Bangladesh
Best time to go: October to March.
Main Tourist Attractions: Colourful tribal life of Hill Tracts, world's longest sea beach at Cox's Bazar, centuries old historical sites at Dhaka, Kuakata beach, Paharpur, Mainamati, Mohastangar, Sundarbans the home of the Royal Bengal Tiger, largest tea garden, St. Martin's Island, etc.


Bangladesh Tourism

Bangladesh Tourism Board
Website of the National Tourism Organization of Bangladesh, which is responsible for promoting tourism, which it does not do.

Tourism - Banglapedia
About tourism in Bangladesh by Banglapedia, the Bangladesh encyclopedia.

Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation
A guide to Bangladesh by the National Tourism Organization. One of the many similar tailored government websites with little information.


Tourism in Bangladesh
Wikipedia article about Tourism in Bangladesh.

Wikivoyage: Bangladesh
A Wikivoyage guide to Bangladesh.

Wikivoyage: Saint Martins Island
A guide to the country's only coral island.




Monsoon season is the time when the floating guava markets on the canals that crisscross thousands of guava orchards around Bhimruli in Jhalokathi district come alive with visitors from all over the country.
Image: Lonely Explorer 

 

UNESCO World Heritage Sites



The eastern front of the 15th century Chunakhola Mosque amid paddy fields in Bagerhat.
Image: Dr Amit Biswas
 

UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Bangladesh
There are three UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Bangladesh, two cultural and one natural. In addition, five properties are included in the UNESCO Tentative List, an inventory of those properties which each State Party intends to consider for nomination. (see the List of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Bangladesh).


Historic Mosque City of Bagerhat
Historically known as Khalifatabad, the ancient city is situated in the southwestern part of Bangladesh in the Bagerhat district in the Sundarbans. The property contains some of the most significant buildings of early Muslim architecture of Bengal.


Ruins of the Buddhist Vihara at Paharpur
Ancient monastery-city with ruins of an extensive Buddhist complex. The ruins are witness to the rise of Mahayana Buddhism in Bengal from the 7th century onwards. The complex, known as Somapur Mahavira, the "Great Monastery," was a renowned intellectual center until the 12th century. With its layout perfectly adapted to its religious function, this monastic city represents a unique artistic achievement that influenced Buddhist architecture as far away as Cambodia through its simplicity and harmony of its lines and the abundance of its sculptural decorations.


The Sundarbans
The Sundarbans is one of the largest mangrove forests in the world, covering the delta of the Ganges, Brahmaputra and Meghna rivers in the south of Bangladesh and the southern part of West Bengal (India). The mangrove area is known for its wide range of fauna, including some hundred bird species, lizards, mudskippers, dolphins, and the threatened Bengal tiger.



Bird's eye view of Sompur Mahavihara Buddhist Monastery in Paharpur, Badalgachhi, in the northwestern part of Bangladesh.
Image: Pinu Rahman
 

Education in Bangladesh



The Curzon Hall in Dhaka, a building from the British Raj-era, is home to the University of Dhaka's Faculty of Science.
Image: Saiful786


Universities in Bangladesh
Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET)
BUET in Dhaka is the oldest institution for the study of engineering and architecture in Bangladesh.
Independent University, Bangladesh
IUB, one of the oldest and largest private universities in Bangladesh, was established in 1993.
Jahangirnagar University
JU is a public university in Dhaka, established in 1970.
North South University (NSU)
NSU, the first private university in Bangladesh, was established in 1992.
University of Chittagong
The public university located in Chittagong was founded in 1965.
University of Dhaka (DU)
The University of Dhaka is Bangladesh's oldest University; it was established in 1921.

List of Universities in Bangladesh
Wikipedia's list of universities in Bangladesh.

Science
Bangladesh Space Research and Remote Sensing Organization
Organization for the application of space science.
 
 
 

Environment & Nature



Within the Ratargul Swamp Forest in the northeast of Bangladesh, about 20 km (13 mi) north of the city of Sylhet, near the border to Meghalaya (India).
Image: Nadia Islam Nitul


Bangladesh Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
The agency for the planning, promotion, co-ordination and overseeing the implementation of environmental and forestry programs.

Bangladesh Department of Environment
DOE's mission is to ensure a clean and healthy environment for the benefit of present and future generations.

Bangladesh Environment Network
BEN's website provides information on environmental issues in Bangladesh.

Flood Forecasting and Warning Centre (FFWC)
The center monitors rainfall and water levels throughout Bangladesh - with a lag of about 2 months. 



Breaking ships at Chittagong, the world's largest ship breaking yard. It employs over 200,000 Bangladeshis and accounts for around one-half of all the steel in Bangladesh.
Some shipbreaking practices have highly concerning environmental and human impacts, releasing materials such as oil, asbestos and toxic paints into the local environment, and disrupting biodiversity. ^[1]
Image: Utenriksdepartementet UD

 

Bangladesh History



Dargah (mausoleum) of Hazrat Shah Jalal (1271 – 1346) in Sylhet.
Image: Anjon Singho


History of Bangladesh

The country's early documented history was characterized by the succession of Hindu and Buddhist kingdoms and empires vying for regional dominance. Islam arrived in the 6th-7th centuries CE and gradually became dominant in the region from the early 13th century through the conquests of Bakhtiyar Khalji and the activities of Sunni missionaries such as Shah Jalal.

History
Banglapedia article about the history of Bangladesh.

History of Bangladesh
Wikipedia: part of a series on the History of Bangladesh.


Bangladesh Liberation War

Bangladesh Genocide Archive
Online archive of the chronology of events of the almost unknown Genocide in Bangladesh in 1971.

1971 Bangladesh genocide
Wikipedia entry on Operation Searchlight, when West Pakistan (now Pakistan) launched a military crackdown to suppress Bengali demands for self-determination.

The Genocide the U.S. Can't Remember, But Bangladesh Can't Forget
Smithsonian Magazine's advertising peppered article about the bloody massacre that would lead to the birth of Bangladesh.

The Bangladesh Liberation War Museum
The museum in the center of Dhaka shows the history of the war for Bangladesh's independence in 1971.

Rahman, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur (1920-1975)
Banglapedia article about the "Father of The Nation of Bangladesh."
 
 

Rohingya in Bangladesh



This aerial view of Bhasan Char Island shows part of the housing complexes built on the island off the coast of southwestern Bangladesh to resettle Rohingyas from camps near Cox's Bazar.
Image: The Daily Star


Rohingya Peoples

The Rohingya are a stateless Muslim minority in Myanmar. Before the displacement crisis, an estimated 1.4 million Rohingya (in Myanmar known as "Bangali") lived in the country.

The latest exodus began on 25 August 2017, when violence broke out in Myanmar's Rakhine State, driving more than 742,000 to seek refuge in neighboring Bangladesh. Most arrived in the first three months of the crisis.

Rohingyas are worried about the situation in Myanmar (2021)
The Rohingya are worried about the ongoing political situation in Myanmar. Although the border situation is normal, there has been a mixed reaction among the Rohingyas sheltered in Ukhia Teknaf. Rohingya leaders claim there are still more than 600,000 Rohingya in Myanmar. There is a frightening atmosphere among the Rohingyas about the seizure of state power by the army there. Therefore, there is a risk that Rohingya repatriation will be delayed in such a situation. ^[2]

Bangladesh: Rohingya refugees happy with the facilities on Bhasan Char Island
WION channel video about relocated Rohingya refugees on Bhasan Char Island.
 

Additional Information

Selected country profiles of Bangladesh published by international organizations.


Amnesty International: Bangladesh
Amnesty International is a non-governmental organization focused on human rights.

BBC Country Profile: Bangladesh
Country profiles by the British public service broadcaster.

BTI Transformation Index Bangladesh
Bangladesh Country Report 2020 by Bertelsmann Stiftung.

The Commonwealth: Bangladesh
Profile of the Commonwealth Member country Bangladesh. It joined the Commonwealth in 1972, after independence from Pakistan.

Council on Foreign Relations: Bangladesh
The United States nonprofit think tank specializing in U.S. foreign policy and international affairs.

FAO: Bangladesh
UN Food and Agriculture Organization.

Freedom House profile Bangladesh
The U.S. government-funded non-profit organization whose goal is to promote liberal democracies worldwide.

GlobalEDGE: Bangladesh
Global business knowledge portal - Global Insights by country, Bangladesh.

The Heritage Foundation: Bangladesh
2020 Index of Economic Freedom by The Heritage Foundation, an American conservative think tank.

Human Rights Watch about Bangladesh
HRW conducts research and advocacy on human rights.

OEC: Bangladesh
The Observatory of Economic Complexity provides the latest international trade data.

Reporters Without Borders: Bangladesh
RSF (Reporters sans frontières) is an international NGO that defends and promotes media freedom.

UNDP - Human Development Indicators: Bangladesh
The UN Human Development Index (HDI) for Bangladesh.

Wikipedia: Bangladesh
Wikipedia's Bangladesh page in many languages.

Worldbank in Bangladesh
World Development Indicators database.

The CIA World Factbook -- Bangladesh
CIA World Factbook intelligence on Bangladesh.