Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world and among the most densely populated with a population of 170 million in an area of 148,460 square kilometres (57,320 sq mi). Bangladesh shares land borders with India to the north, west, and east, and Myanmar to the southeast. To the south, it has a coastline along the Bay of Bengal. To the north, it is separated from Bhutan and Nepal by the Siliguri Corridor, and from China by the mountainous Indian state of Sikkim. Dhaka, the capital and largest city, is the nation's political, financial, and cultural centre. Chittagong is the second-largest city and the busiest port. The official language is Bengali, with Bangladeshi English also used in government.
Dhaka, formerly known as Dacca, is the capital and largest city of Bangladesh. It is the ninth-largest and eighth-most densely populated city in the world with a density of 23,234 people per square kilometer within a total area of approximately 300 square kilometers. Dhaka is a megacity, and has a population of 10.2 million residents as of 2024, and a population of over 23.9 million residents in Dhaka Metropolitan Area. It is widely considered to be the most densely populated built-up urban area in the world. Dhaka is the most important cultural, economic, and scientific hub of Eastern South Asia, as well as a major Muslim-majority city. Dhaka ranks third in South Asia and 39th in the world in terms of GDP. Lying on the Ganges Delta, it is bounded by the Buriganga, Turag, Dhaleshwari and Shitalakshya rivers. Dhaka is also the largest Bengali-speaking city in the world.
Transport in Bangladesh is dominated by roadways, accounting for the majority of both passenger and cargo traffic due to substantial development efforts since independence. Eight major national highways connect the capital, Dhaka, with divisional and district headquarters, port cities, and international routes. Despite this, vehicle usage per capita remains low, with non-motorised modes prevailing. However, Bangladesh's roads are unsafe, having one of the highest road accident fatality rates. They also suffer from high congestion, as well as severe air and noise pollution.
Biman Bangladesh Airlines, commonly known as Biman, is the national flag carrier of Bangladesh. With its main hub at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka, the airline also operates flights from its secondary hubs at Shah Amanat International Airport in Chittagong and as well as Osmani International Airport in Sylhet. The airline provides international passenger and cargo services to multiple destinations and has air service agreements in 42 countries. The headquarters of the airline, Balaka Bhaban, is located in Kurmitola, in the northern part of Dhaka. Annual Hajj flights, transporting tourists, migrants, and non-resident Bangladeshi workers and the activities of its subsidiaries form an integral part of the corporate business of the airline. Bangladesh's air transport sector, which is experiencing an 8% annual growth rate thanks to a large number of outbound tourists, domestic tourists, and non-resident Bangladeshi travellers, is very competitive with stiff competition among some private Bangladeshi airlines as well as Biman.
Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport, , is the main international airport serving Dhaka City, the capital city of Bangladesh, and it is the largest airport in Bangladesh. It is located in Kurmitola, 17 km (11 mi) from the city centre, in the northern part of Dhaka. The airport is also used as a base for the Bangladesh Air Force, named BAF Base Bangabandhu. The airport has an area of 802 hectares. The Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) operates and maintains the airport. It started operations in 1980, taking over from Tejgaon Airport as the principal international airport of the country. The airport was formerly known as Dacca International Airport and later as Zia International Airport, before being named in honour of Shah Jalal, who is one of the most respected Sufi saints of Bangladesh. The IATA code of the airport "DAC" is derived from "Dacca", which is the previously used spelling for "Dhaka".
Bangladesh Television, commonly known by its acronym BTV, is the state-owned television network of Bangladesh. The network was originally established as the East Pakistan branch of Pakistan Television in 1964. It was rebranded right after the independence of Bangladesh. BTV is the oldest Bengali-language television network in the world, as well as the oldest television network in Bangladesh, and is sister to the radio broadcaster Bangladesh Betar, which, along with BTV, are both owned and operated by the government.
The Daily Prothom Alo is a Bengali-language daily newspaper in Bangladesh, published from Dhaka. It is the largest circulated newspaper in Bangladesh.
Robi Axiata PLC is the second largest mobile network operator in Bangladesh Axiata of Malaysia holds a major controlling stake of 61.82% in the company, while Bharti Airtel of India holds 28.18% and investors in DSE and CSE hold 10%. Robi first commenced operation in 1997 as Telekom Malaysia International (Bangladesh) with the brand name ‘AKTEL’. In 2010, the company was re-branded to ‘Robi’ and the company changed its name to Robi Axiata Limited. As per government rule, the name changed to Robi Axiata PLC in 2024 as Robi is listed in Stock Market and a Public Limited Company. Robi Axiata has spectrum on GSM 900, 1800 and 2100 MHz bands. On 16 November 2016, Airtel Bangladesh was merged into Robi as a product brand of Robi, where Robi Axiata PLC is the licensee of Airtel brand only in Bangladesh. Having successfully completed the merger process, Robi has emerged as the second largest mobile phone operator in Bangladesh.
Banglalink Digital Communications Ltd., d.b.a. Banglalink is a Dutch-owned telecommunications company headquartered in Gulshan-1, Dhaka. It is the third-largest mobile network operator in Bangladesh and a fully-owned company of Telecom Ventures Ltd., a 100% owned subsidiary of Global Telecom Holding Ltd. VEON owns 51.9% shares of Global Telecom Holding following a business combination between VEON Ltd. and Wind Telecom S.p.A. in April 2011.
The Bangladesh Post Office also known by trade name Bangla Post is a government-operated agency responsible for providing postal services in Bangladesh. It is a subsidiary of the Ministry of Posts, Telecommunications and Information Technology. This ministry is concerned with the policymaking for its two attached departments. The director general of Bangladesh Post Office is Md Harunur Rashid.
Islamic University, Bangladesh ; commonly referred to as Islamic University, Kushtia shortly IU, is a public PhD granting research university in Kushtia, Bangladesh and the largest seat of higher education in the south-west part of the country. This university in Bangladesh stands as the sole institution offering a unique program in Theology, alongside seven other academic divisions/faculties: Engineering and Technology, Humanities, Social Sciences, Sciences, Biological Sciences, Business Administration, and Law, all coexisting within a diverse and multicultural environment. It is financed by the Government of Bangladesh through University Grants Commission, Bangladesh. On 22 November 1979, the foundation of the Islamic University was set up in Kushtia, and it is operated under the Islamic University Act of 1980. Islamic University began operations on 28 June 1986. It holds the distinction of being the seventh most ancient educational institution in the nation, serving as Bangladesh's inaugural university post-independence from Pakistan in 1971. It offers undergraduate, graduate, M Phil and PhD degrees.
The Internet in Bangladesh has witnessed significant growth. Although facing many constraints in expanding Internet access and use, development of the Internet and Information Technology are high government priorities. In March, 2021 Internet users in Bangladesh increased to 116 million. On 19 February 2018, Bangladesh started the 4G network service.
Television is one of the most popular forms of media and information in Bangladesh. It was one of the first countries in South Asia to introduce television on 25 December 1964, in the then East Pakistan under the state-owned television network Pakistan Television Corporation in its capital, Dhaka. After the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971, the Dhaka television station of PTV was renamed to Bangladesh Television, which had a monopoly on the country's television industry until 1997, with the launch of ATN Bangla on satellite television. Since then, the number of privately owned television channels saw a tremendous rise in the Bangladeshi television market.
BRAC Bank PLC is a private commercial bank in Bangladesh, founded in 2001. The bank is a subsidiary of BRAC, a leading development organization in the country. BRAC Bank is known for its focus on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
The Bangabandhu Satellite-1 (Bangabandhu-1) is the first Bangladeshi geostationary communications and broadcasting satellite. It is named after the father of the nation, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. It was manufactured by Thales Alenia Space and launched on 12 May 2018 from Kennedy Space Center, USA. The satellite was the first payload launched by a SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5 launch vehicle. With the launch, Bangladesh became the 57th country to independently operate a satellite in space.
Export Import Bank of Bangladesh PLC. commonly known as EXIM Bank is one of the private commercial banks in Bangladesh. The Bank came into operation as a commercial bank on 3 August 1999 as per rules and regulations of Bangladesh Bank. From its establishment the bank was known as BEXIM Bank Limited. But due to legal constraints, the bank was renamed as EXIM Bank, which stood for Export Import Bank of Bangladesh Limited.
Kakao Corporation is a South Korean Internet conglomerate headquartered in Jeju City. It was formed through the merger of Daum Communications and the original Kakao Inc in 2010. The company was renamed Daum Kakao in 2014. In 2015 it was rebranded once more, reverting simply to Kakao.
City Bank PLC is a Bangladeshi private commercial bank headquartered in Dhaka. The bank provides products and services in retail banking, corporate finance, SME Banking, women banking, digital banking, asset management, equity brokerage, and security. It has 133 branches. The bank is a licensee to issue Visa and MasterCard Debit and Credit Cards and it is the sole licensee of American Express Cards in Bangladesh.
Kabir Bin Anwar is a retired Bangladeshi civil servant. He was the 23rd Cabinet Secretary of Bangladesh Government, serving for a short period of time from 15 December 2022 until he went to post-retirement leave on 3 January 2023. Prior to that, he was Senior Secretary of the Ministry of Water Resources. Kabir is the chairperson of the Board of Directors of Centre for Environmental and Geographic Information Services. He was the 28th President of Bangladesh Administrative Service Association. He is the chairperson of non-profit Issabela foundation, named after his mother.
