By IANS,
Dhaka : Bangladesh’s population rose 1.7 percent in 2007 to reach 161.3 million, while the per capita gross national income (GNI) dropped to $1,230 from $2,090 last year, a UN report said.
At the present growth rate, Bangladesh will be home to 254.1 million by 2050, said the latest global population report by the UN Population Fund (UNPF).
The total population in 2007 was 147 million, New Age newspaper said Thursday.
The country’s population was 70 million when it became free in 1971.
The total fertility rate has, however, decreased to 2.81 in 2008 compared to 2.98 in 2007, the report said.
The GNI of Bangladesh lies far below the other Asian countries like India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka where the per capita income is $4,000, $2,410 and $3,730, respectively. It is slightly better than Nepal where it is $1,010.