Bangladesh: background information sheet

Bangladesh is a small country, just over half the size of the UK. It is one of the most densely populated countries in the world, with a population of approximately 124 million.

Despite its rich natural resources, Bangladesh is one of the world’s poorest nations. About 78% of Bangladeshis live in poverty, and find it hard to meet their basic needs for food, shelter, clothing, healthcare, and education.

Agriculture

Bangladesh is primarily an agricultural country. Two-thirds of Bangladeshis depend on the land for a living.

However, land is not equally shared. Most of the best land is in the hands of a few large landowners. About 64 per cent of Bangladeshis are landless or do not own enough land to feed their families. The poor often have no choice but to live on land that is vulnerable to flooding.

The Environment

Bangladesh is the largest delta in the world and, apart from a few hills in the north and south-east, it is flat as far as the eye can see. This means that it is prone to severe and heavy flooding.

Flood water is both a blessing and a curse in Bangladesh. The flooding affects about one third of the country every year. The flood waters fertilise the land, giving Bangladesh some of the richest farmland in the world. The great rivers Ganges and Brahmaputra (called Padma and Jamuna in Bangladesh) which flow into the country provide abundant water for growing rice and jute (a kind of fibre used in making carpets and sacks). Floods benefit farmers who have found ways of using the flood water to cultivate their crops.

Flooding

Since 1984, there have been six huge floods in Bangladesh. In 1998, the country was devastated by the worst floods in living memory.Nearly three quarters of the country was flooded and a quarter of the population was forced to leave their homes. When the flood waters went down an even bigger problem remained. The waters left an enormous health problem. Dirty water carries disease and millions of people were at risk of illness and had lost their food crops. Whole villages have lost their homes and livelihoods.

The poor have particularly suffered from the floods. They have only just enough to survive from day to day, and when a disaster strikes they have nothing to tide them over. They cannot afford to insure their homes, and lose everything in a disaster.

The response

Communities in Bangladesh have developed ways of coping with emergencies. Flood resistant trees and shrubs have been planted to make the soil firmer. The government has also taken steps. Permanent shelters have been built on higher ground where communities can seek safety. But all of this costs money -- one cyclone shelter alone costs £45,000 to build, and Bangladesh, as one of the poorest countries in the world, cannot afford the costs alone.

Lesson plans: Activities using the media

From Cool Planet - Oxfam's website for teachers and young people: www.oxfam.org.uk/coolplanet

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