GEOGRAPHY
Bangladesh is a country in southern Asia that borders India and the Bay of Bengal. Bangladesh has an area size that is comparable to that of Iowa. The country is mostly flat, with some hills in the south. The climate is tropical, with mild winters, hot summers, and a rainy monsoon season. About 70% of the land is arable, making Bangladesh very favorable for agriculture. With the monsoon season, floods are common. In the offseason, the lack of rain often brings drought.
THE PEOPLE
Bangladesh has a population of 158 million, making it the 8th largest country in the world. Ethnically, the country is not very diverse. Approximately 99% of people are Bengali and speak the Bangla language, but the 1% of other people are made up of an estimated 75 ethnic groups. About 89% of people are Muslim and 10% are Hindus in Bangladesh.
ECONOMY
Bangladesh has struggled with poor infrastructure and political instability. Despite this, the country’s Gross Domestic Product has still grown about 6% per year in the past 20 years, and Bangladesh has had one of the best growth rates amongst all countries. Even with the rapidly improving economy, 31% of Bangladeshis live below the poverty line, meaning that almost 50 million people are impoverished. The largest industry in Bangladesh is garment export but cotton, paper, and leather are also widely practiced industries.
EDUCATION
Bangladesh has free primary education for the children. From the ages of six to ten, children are legally required to attend school. However, this law is frequently broken, as only half of children in especially impoverished areas attend school. Schools face a teacher shortage. When parents need help from their children around the house, the children are often removed from schooling. The literacy rate of people in Bangladesh is 71%, which is well below the worldwide average of 86%.
HEALTH CARE
The incredibly high population density of Bangladesh has made it easy for disease to spread. Poor water sanitation and malnutrition make the general health of Bangladesh quite poor. With such a large population, there are not enough hospital beds to treat sick Bangladeshi in times of crisis, and Bangladesh has one of the worst ratios of hospital beds per 10,000 people in the world. Bangladesh does have free healthcare for those who do get sick, but this is a limited resource and is far from universal.
HEMOPHILIA IN BANGLADESH
According to the World Federation of Hemophilia global survey, there are 503 people with Hemophilia and less than 10 people with other bleeding disorders in Bangladesh. With a population over 150 million, it is almost certain that this number is underreported because many Bangladeshis are living undiagnosed. With poor health services, there is difficulty for Bangladeshis to get a diagnosis and even when they do, it is especially difficult to get the factor that they need for treatments.
The leading group for Hemophilia support in Bangladesh is the Hemophilia Society of Bangladesh (HSB). Founded in 1994 by Muhammad Habibullah, the HSB aims to help Bangladeshis learn about and treat their condition.
