Bangladesh has an agrarian economy with 32% of GDP coming from the Agriculture Sector. Major agricultural products are rice, jute, wheat, potato, pulses, tobacco, tea, sugarcane, etc. The country is the largest exporter of jute and jute goods in the world. Readymade garments are among the most exportable items. Tea, frozen shrimps, fish, leather goods and handicrafts are also major exportable commodities.
The country has under gone a major shift in its economic philosophy and management in recent years. On its birth, it embraced socialism as the economic ideology with a dominant role for the public sector. But since the mid-seventies, it undertook a major restructuring towards establishing a market economy with emphasis on private sector-led economic growth.
During the nineties, the country has completed a major stabilization program which has reduced inflation as well as fiscal and current account deficits and established a healthy foreign exchange reserve position with low and sustainable debt-service liabilities. With a modest economic growth, the basic indicators related to health, education and poverty have all shown sustained improvement
Basic Socio-Economic Indicators (1997-98)
Population (January. 1998) 126
Million Value of exports (million US $) 5020
Population growth rate (%) 173
Value of imports (million US $) 7525
GDP (at current price. billion taka) 154092
Exports (as % GDP) 14.7
GDP(1984-85 constant price, billion taka) 718.12
Imports (as % 0f GDP) 22.0
GDP growth rate (% at constant price) 56
Urban poverty (%) 49.9
Foreign exchange reserves (Millions USS) 1903
Rural poverty (%) 47.1
Domestic savings (% of GDP) 7.5
Urban population (as % of total population) 24
National savings (% of GDP) 148
Income ratio of highest 20% to lowest 20% 8.8
Gross investment (% of GDP) 173
Life expectancy at birth 59.6
Government expenditure (% 1 74 of GDP)
Crude Birth rate (per 249 1000 population) 24.9
Government income (% of GDP) 122
Crude Death rate (per 76 1000 population) 7.6
Adult Literacy rate (I 5+.%) 5 I 2
Infant mortality rate (per 1000 live births) 67
Total Labour Force (million, 1995-96)
Total fertility rate (per woman) 3.41
Male Labour Force (million, 1995-96)
Contraceptive prevalence (%) 509
Agricultural Labour Force (as % of total) 632
Persons per physician 4955
Industrial Labour Force (as % of total) 77
Access to safe drinking water (% household) 966
Female and Male ratio 100:106
Access to hygienic toilet (% household) 358
Source Bangladesh Economic Review 1998: Bangtadesh Bureau of statistics.
According to a World Bank estimate, Bangladesh has the 36th largest economy in the world in terms of GNP based on purchasing power parity method of valuation, and 55th largest in terms of nominal GNP in U.S. Dollars. However, because of the population size, per capita income was US$ 280 in 1998(1 US$=Taka 48.50).
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