GDP per capita $4,822 (2013) Unemployment 19% (2013) | Population below poverty line 16% Expenses $14.00 Billion (Total) | |
 | ||
GDP $10 Billion (2016) (nominal) | ||
Dhaka's economy is dominated by Dhaka City but has other productive cities, districts and suburbs. According to IMF's 2014 analysis, the total nominal Gross State Product (GDP) of Dhaka was US$10(2016) billion, accounting for 35% of Bangladesh's economy. Dhaka is also home to major Bangladeshi industrial conglomerates such as Beximco Holdings Limited, Bashundhara Group, Jamuna Group, PRAN-RFL Group, BSRM and Defense Advancement Trading Company (DATCO). Many foreign establishment such as GlaxoSmithKline, Heidelberg Cement, Reckitt Benckiser, HSBC, British American Tobacco, and Nestlé have their regional headquarters located in Dhaka.
Contents
During the Mughal Era and Bengal Presidency, Dhaka was the largest economy within the Bengal and Sub-continent region. With a GSP of US$31 billion, Dhaka has the biggest economy among the divisions in Bangladesh. If Dhaka were a nation, it would rank as the 58th largest economy in the world, ahead of neighboring countries like Sri Lanka, Myanmar, and Nepal. Its 2013 per capita personal income was US$4,822 an increase of approximately 6.0% from 2013, placing it second only behind port city Chittagong.
History
Dhaka, formerly spelled as Dacca in English, is the capital and one of the oldest cities of Bangladesh. The history of Dhaka begins with the existence of urbanised settlements in the area that is now Dhaka dating from the 7th century CE. The city area was ruled by the Buddhist kingdom of Kamarupa before passing to the control of the Sena dynasty in the 9th century CE. After the Sena dynasty, Dhaka was successively ruled by the Turkic and Afghan governors descending from the Delhi Sultanate before the arrival of the Mughals in 1608. After Mughals, British ruled the region for over 150 years until the independence of India. In 1947, Dhaka became the capital of the East Bengal province under the dominion of Pakistan. After the independence of Bangladesh in 1971, Dhaka became the capital of the new state.
Upon arrival of Islam in this region, Turkish and Afghan rulers reigned the area from the early 14th century until the late 16th century. An Afghan fort (also known as Old Fort of Dhaka) was built at that time which was later converted to the present-form of Dhaka Central Jail in 1820 by the British. A 17th-century historian, Mirza Nathan, described the fort in his book Baharistan-i-Ghaibi as "surrounded by mud walls and the largest and strongest in pre-Mughal era".
In 1412 Shah Ali Baghdadi, a saint arrived in Delhi and then came to Dhaka where he became a disciple of Shah Bahar of the Chistia order. His tomb is still at Mirpur on the outskirts of Dhaka.
Binat Bibi Mosque was built in 1454 at Narinda area of Dhaka during the reign of the Sultan of Bengal, Nasiruddin Mahmud Shah (r. 1435 – 1459). It is the oldest brick structure that still exists in the city.
According to the inscription found near the present-day Central Jail area, the gate of Naswallagali Mosque was renoveated in 1459 AD. Around 1550 a Portuguese historian, João de Barros, first inserted Dhaka into the map in his book Décadas da Ásia (Decades of Asia).
Dhaka came into the domain of Mughal Empire during the reign of Akbar after the Battle of Tukaroi which was fought in 1575 near the village of Tukaroi now in Balasore District, Odisha between the Mughals and the Karrani Sultanate of Bengal and Bihar. However, during this reign of Emperor Akbar (r. 1556–1605), Dhaka was referred as a Thana (a military outpost). Dhaka was situated in Bhati region which hosted several rebel forces led by Bara-Bhuiyans from mid- to late 16th century. After the leader of Bara-Bhuiyans, Musa Khan, was subdued by Mughal General Islam Khan Chisti in 1608, Dhaka again went directly under control of Mughals.
The newly appointed Governor of Bengal, Islam Khan transferred the Bengal capital from Rajmahal to Dhaka in order to crush further rebel uprisings. This initiated a new era of the history of Dhaka as the capital city of Mughol province of Bengal. He also renamed Dhaka as Jahangirnagar (City of Jahangir) after the Emperor Jahangir. Due to its location right beside some main river routes, Dhaka was an important center for business. The Muslin fabric was produced and traded in this area. He successfully crushed the regional revolts in Jessore, Bakla (present days Barisal) and Bhulua (present days Noakhali) and brought almost the entire province under the Mughal domain.
As the next governor, Prince Shuja built Bara Katra between 1644 and 1646 in Dhaka to serve as his official residence. He also patronized building of Hussaini Dalan, a Shia shrine in old Dhaka though he himself was a Sunni. In the late 1640s, for personal and political reasons, he made the temporary move to shift the capital back to Rajmahal. Dhaka became a subordinate station.
Due to political turmoil, Emperor Aurangzeb sent Mir Jumla to deal with Prince Shuja. He pursued Shuja up to Dhaka and reached the city on 9 May 1660. But Shuja fled to Arakan region. As Jumla was ordered to become the next Governor of Bengal, Dhaka was again made the capital of the region. He was engaged in construction activities in Dhaka and its suburbs - two roads, two bridges and a network of forts. A fort at Tangi-Jamalpur guarded one of the roads connecting Dhaka with the northern districts which is now known as Mymensingh Road. He built Mir Jumla Gate at the northern border to defend the city from the attacks of Magh pirates. Italian traveler Niccolao Manucci came to Dhaka in 1662–63. According to him, Dhaka had large number of inhabitants compare to the size of the city. Most of the houses were built of straw. There were only two kuthis - one of the English and the other of the Dutch. Ships were loaded with fine white cotton and silk fabrics. A large number of Christians and white and black Portuguese resided in Dhaka.
Construction of Lalbagh Fort was commenced in 1678 by Prince Muhammad Azam during his 15-month-long governorship of Bengal, but before the work could complete, he was recalled by Emperor Aurangzeb. The largest expansion of the city took place under the next Mughal governor Shaista Khan (1664–1688). The city then stretched for 12 miles in length and 8 miles in breadth and is believed to have had a population of nearly a million people. The Chawk Mosque, Babubazar Mosque, Sat Gumbad Mosque, Choto Katra were originally built during this period. He also built tombs of Bibi Pari, Bibi Champa and Dara Begum. A French traveler, Jean-Baptiste Tavernier, arrived Dhaka on 13 January 1666 and met Shaista Khan. He referred Shaista Khan as "the uncle of King Aurangzeb and the cleverest man in all his kingdom".
Prince Azim-ush-Shan became the Governor of Bengal in 1697. Due to conflict with Diwan Murshid Quli Khan, he shifted his office from Dhaka to Patna in 1703. Murshid Khan also shifted his office to Mauksusabad (later renamed it to Murshidabad).
International trade and other sectors
Dhaka has historically derived significant revenue from International trade, Textile, Pharmachemical and financial institutions. The exports of goods made in Dhaka totaled approximately US$10 billion in 2012, with a rapid growth in Pharmachemical, and IT with 15.68% and 7.28% growth.