Bangladesh KEY FACTS Joined Commonwealth: 1972 Population: 156,595,000 (2013) GDP p.c. growth: 3.7% p.a. 1990–2013 GNI p.c.: US$900 (2013) UN HDI 2014: World ranking 142 Life expectancy: 71 years (2013) Under-five mortality rate (per 1,000 live births): 41 (2013) Largest contribution to mortality: Cardiovascular diseases Government health expenditure: 1.2% (2012) General information The People’s Republic of Bangladesh is a fertile and densely populated delta country in southern Asia bordered by the Bay of Bengal, India and Myanmar (formerly Burma). Climate: Tropical monsoon-type. Hot and humid April–October, with the monsoon running June–September. Cool and dry November–March. The country is vulnerable to cyclones, which can be devastating – the cyclone of April 1991 killed 138,000 people. In November 2007 Cyclone Sidr hit the southern coastal strip of Bangladesh, killing many people and destroying thousands of homes. Environment: The most significant issues are severe overpopulation, high risk of flooding in large areas of the country, soil degradation and erosion, groundwater contamination by naturally occurring arsenic and poisoning of fish by use of commercial pesticides. Population: 156,595,000 (2013); the population density is among the world’s highest; 33 per cent of people live in urban areas and 14 per cent in urban agglomerations of more than one million people. The population growth rate stood at 1.6 per cent p.a. between the years of 1990 and 2013. In 2013 the birth rate was 20 per 1,000 people (47 in 1970), controlled by vigorous family planning schemes, and life expectancy was 71 years (44 in 1970). Economy: Bangladesh is classified as a low-income economy by the World Bank. Health Child and maternal health: The rate of infant mortality in Bangladesh was 33 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2013, with an under-five mortality rate of 41 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2013. The country’s under-five mortality rate has fallen steadily since the early 1990s and, since 2010, the figure has met the target of 48 deaths per 1,000 live births as defined by Millennium Development Goal 4 (MDG 4). In 2012 the most prominent known causes of death for children below the age of five years were prematurity (20 per cent), intrapartum-related complications (14 per cent) and acute respiratory infections (13 per cent). Other contributory causes were congenital anomalies (nine per cent), neonatal sepsis (11 per cent) and injuries (seven per cent). In 2013 Bangladesh had an adjusted maternal mortality ratio of 170 deaths per 100,000 live births (this figure was estimated at 240 deaths per 100,000 live births by UN agencies/World Bank in 2010). Burden of disease: Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) accounted for an estimated 59 per cent of all mortality in Bangladesh in 2012. The most prevalent NCDs in Bangladesh are cardiovascular diseases, which accounted for 17 per cent of total deaths across all age groups in 2012. Non-communicable variants of respiratory diseases, cancer and diabetes contributed 11 per cent, ten per cent and three per cent to total mortality, respectively (2012). Injuries accounted for nine per cent of deaths in 2012. Communicable diseases along with maternal, perinatal and nutritional conditions accounted for an estimated 32 per cent of all 142 Commonwealth Health Partnerships 2015
Commonwealth Health Partnerships 2015
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