Homework4
Date: 5/22
Defining features of Bangladesh
Bangladesh is
a country located in Southern Asia, between Burma and India. The country was
originally known as Bengal, before the independence war led by Awami Leauge
(AL). With the support of India, Bangali won their independence in 1971, which
led to the creation of the nation, Bangladesh. However, Bangladesh experienced
multiple changes in their political regimes post-independence. The government
faced series of military coups, which resulted a military-backed government (BNP)
in 1975. Since then, the Bangladesh government alternated power between AL and
BNP. Nevertheless, in December 2008, the Bangladesh government became a fully
democratic government and has been a democratic country since. The country has
made a great progress in many areas, in particular in economic development,
however it still needs much development in human resources.
Bangladesh
has a tropical climate with mild winter (October to March), hot, humid summer
(March to June) and humid, warm rainy monsoon (June to October). Approximately
60% of the country’s land is arable and most of the country is situated on
deltas of large rivers flowing from Himalayas. These geographical factors give
Bangladesh many advantages in farming, and hence the country specializes in agriculture.
Around half of Bangladeshis are employed in agriculture sector with rice as
their main harvesting crop. Also, more than half of their GDP is generated by
this sector as well. Another prime industry of Bangladesh is the garment
industry. Garment industry makes up 80% of the nation’s exports, surpassing $18
billion. Additionally, the garment industry is known to be very resilient
against series of factory accidents and strikes. The agriculture industry
coupled with the garment export have contributed greatly to the increasing
nation’s GDP.
Bangladesh is a severely overpopulated country that has a population
of more than 1.6million - world’s 9th largest. The main religion of
the country is Muslim, however Hindu also takes a big part. The average life
expectancy of the people is 70.65 years and ranks 150th in the
world. Compare to other developed nations, the life expectancy of Bangladeshi
is quite low as evident by the relatively small expenditure on health of 3.6%
of GDP 2012; ranks 169th in the world. Bangladesh has a very low GDP
per capita of $3400PPP (180th lowest in the world). Likewise, many
people are landless and are living on and cultivate flood-prone land. However,
waterborne diseases are prevalent in surface water, and hence putting people at
risks of many bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, typhoid fever and more.
Additionally, due to use of commercial pesticides, Bangladesh is experiencing
clean water shortages. Despite these difficulties, the school life expectancy
is average of 10 years both for girls and boys and unemployment is quite low of
average of 9.3% for both male and female (105th world rank).
Bangladesh is a country known for its bountiful
agricultural industry and beautiful garment productions. However, the country
still needs much improvement in human development. In particular, education (literacy
rate), clean water access, and sanitation facility access needs urgent improvements.
In conclusion, with the benefit of the country’s geographical location and
human resources, Bangladesh is a country of hope and dreams.
Bibliography:
"The World Fact Book." Central Intelligence Agency.
Central Intelligence Agency, 13 May 2015. Web. 19 May 2015.
