Women outnumber men in Bangladesh population census

Dhaka: For the first time in the history of Bangladesh women outnumber men in its total population. The preliminary result of the 6th population census of Bangladesh recorded 8.33 crore women, 8.17 crore men, and 12,629 hijras in the total population. Releasing the summary data of the 6th Population and Housing Census 2022 conducted last month, the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) revealed that the total population of the country increased from 14.4 crore in 2011 to 16.51 crore in 2022. Bangladesh recorded an average annual population growth rate of 1.22 percent., down from the average annual population growth rate of 1.37 percent recorded in 2011.

The population census also revealed that the percentage of minorities in the total population declined between 2011-2022. The percentage of Hindus declined from 8.54 percent in 2011 to 7.95 percent in 2022. The Buddhist population fell from 0.62 percent in 2011 to 0.61 percent of the total in 2022. The Christian population also fell from 0.31 percent to 0.30 percent of the total during this period. However, the Muslim population increased from 90.39 percent in 2011 to 91.4 percent in 2022.

The percentage of literacy in the country showed a sharp rise between 2011-2022. From 51.77 percent in 2011, literacy in Bangladesh now stands at 74.66 percent marking a rise of over 22.89 percent.

Close to 56 percent of Bangladeshis use mobile phones in 2022 while 30.68 percent of the population is using the internet.

Dhaka division has the largest population in the country at 4.4 crore people reflecting a population growth rate of 1.94 percent per year.