Where in the World is Bangladesh

The Asian nation of Bangladesh shares its 2,638-mile border with India to the west, north and northeast, Myanmar to the southeast, as well as a 360-miles coastline along the Bay of Bengal to the south, which is home to the nation’s fourth largest city and busiest port facility of Chattogram. With a total land and water area of 55,598 square miles, Bangladesh is characterized by two distinct topographical regions; a broad deltaic plain subject to frequent flooding known as the Plain of Bengal or Lower Gengetic Plain and a much smaller, hilly region to the southeast crossed by swiftly flowing rivers. Of the nation’s many southerly flowing rivers—some 700 in number comprising five major river systems—rivers mark the lifeblood of the Bangladeshi people, who rely on them for fishing, transportation and silt deposit runoff that replenishes nutrients to the country’s overworked farmlands.

Boasting a subtropical monsoonal climate, Bangladesh is home to wide seasonal variations in rainfall, moderately warm temperatures and high humidity. Most Bangladeshis experience three seasons of only moderate variation, including a hot, humid summer from March to June, a cool, rainy monsoon season from June to October and a cool, dry winter from October to March. Because of its location just south of the Himalayan foothills, the country’s northeastern region of Sylhet experiences the greatest amount of precipitation, averaging between 129 to 188 inches of rainfall annually, contributing to near annual natural calamities such as floods, tropical cyclones, tornadoes and tidal bores.

With its highest point at Keokradong along the Myanmar border—some 4,035 feet above sea level—Bangladesh is home to a population of 171 million lives, and while 45% of Bangladeshis are employed in agriculture, the nation touts an annual and steadily-growing GDP of $460 billion USD, of which $60 billion in goods and services can be attributed to exports abroad. The nation’s main economic sectors include textiles—including fabrics made from jute—pharmaceutical products and electronics, shipbuilding, bicycles and automotive products, leather, natural gas and crude petroleum, iron, steel and plastic, making the sovereign nation of Bangladesh, a thriving centerpiece in south-central Asia.