Bangladesh has a population of c.150mn people making it the 7th most populous country in the world and with a land area of 147,570sq.km, it is amongst the most densely populated countries in the world. The population is relatively young, with the 0–25 age group comprising 60%, while 3% are 65 or older. Life expectancy is 63 years for both males and females.

The majority ethnic group of Bangladesh are the Bengali people, comprising 98% of the population. The remainder are mostly Bihari migrants and indigenous tribal groups.

The official and most widely used language in Bangladesh, as in West Bengal, is Bangla or Bengali , an Indo-Aryan language of Sanskrit origin with its own script. English is used as second language among the middle and upper classes and in higher education.

The macroeconomic picture has been positive. In 2006 GDP was $62bn (6.7% GDP growth), with the GDP growth forecast to continue above 5% in 2008 and 2009. Inflation increased to 9% in 2007 from 7% in 2006, but is forecast to fall to around 6% by 2009.

Bangladesh adopted a floating exchange-rate system in 2003. The Bangladesh Bank has ensured erratic movements in the taka have been prevented. The taka has depreciated gradually against the US dollar in 2003-06, owing to record levels of remittances and weakness of the US dollar, the taka showed little overall change in value against the US currency in 2007. This stability is expected to continue over the near future, although the taka is expected to depreciate slightly against the US dollar.