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Bangladesh
Women in decision-making positions
23%
Members of local deliberative bodies are women (15,704 elected women)
Head of Government is a woman
Prime Minister: Sheikh Hasina
21%
Parliamentarians are women
10%
Ministers are women

Government organization

Bangladesh is a unitary republic with two spheres of government: central and local.

One tier of central government and one or three tiers of local government: single tier: municipalities and city corporations. Three tiers: Hill Districts/Districts, subdistricts and unions.
Central government
  • Head of State: The President is elected by the members of Parliament.
  • Head of Government: The Prime Minister is a member of Parliament who appears to command the support of the majority of the members of Parliament, as appointed by the President.
  • Legislative body: The Parliament (the House of the Nation) is a unicameral legislature which is composed of directly elected members as well as reserved seats for women.
  • Executive body: The Cabinet is composed of the Prime Minister and ministers appointed by the President.
Local government
  • Organization: Local government is organized into one tier in urban areas and three tiers in rural areas.
  • In urban areas, there is one tier of 316 municipalities and 11 city corporation-level local government units. Municipalities are urban areas with populations of over 50,000 inhabitants. City corporations are larger urban municipalities with a special status.
  • In rural areas, there is an upper tier of three hill districts and 61 district-level local government units, an intermediate tier of 492 subdistrict-level local government units, and a lower tier of 4,571 union-level local government units. The Khagrachari Hill District, the Rangamati Hill District, and the Bandarban Hill District are tribal areas, while the 61 other districts are non-tribal areas.
  • Competencies: Local government is responsible for the administration and the work of public officers, the maintenance of public order, and the preparation and implementation of plans relating to public services and economic development.
  • Ministerial oversight: Ministry of Hill Tract Affairs (for hill districts); Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development, and Co-operatives

Overview of local government

Local government composition
Hill district-level government

Deliberative body: The hill district council is composed of a council chairperson,ten elected tribal, and twenty non-tribal members. The council chairperson is elected to preside over the hill district council; the council chairperson is also vested with executive powers.

Executive body: The council chairperson is the executive of the hill district level of government.

District-level government

Deliberative body: The district council (zila parishad) is composed of a council chairperson, 15 elected members, and five reserved seat members. The council chairperson is elected to preside over the district council; the council chairperson is also vested with executive powers.

Executive body: The council chairperson, assisted by a chief executive officer appointed by the central government, is the executive of the district level of government.

Subdistrict-level government

Deliberative body: The subdistrict council (upazila parishad) is composed of a chairperson, the chairperson of every union council within the subdistrict, the mayor of every municipal corporation within the subdistrict, and reserved seat members. The council chairperson is elected to preside over the subdistrict council; the council chairperson is also vested with executive powers.

Executive body: The council chairperson, assisted by an upazila nirbahi officer appointed by the central government, is the executive of the subdistrict level of government.

Union-level government

Deliberative body: The union council (union parishad) is composed of a council chairperson, nine elected members, and three reserved seat members. The council chairperson is elected to preside over the union council; the council chairperson is also vested with executive powers.

Executive body: The council chairperson is the executive of the union level of government.

Municipalities

Deliberative body: The municipal council (paurasabha) is composed of a mayor, elected members, and reserved seat members. The mayor is elected to preside over the municipal council; the mayor is also vested with executive powers.

Executive body: The mayor, assisted by a chief executive officer appointed by the central government, is the executive of the municipal level of government.

City corporation-level government

Deliberative body: The city corporation council is composed of a mayor, elected members, and reserved seat members. The mayor is elected to preside over the city corporation council; the mayor is also vested with executive powers.

Executive body: The mayor, assisted by a chief executive officer appointed by the central government, is the executive of the city corporation level of government.

Local government elections
Electoral system

Electoral system for local deliberative bodies: majority/plurality (first-past-the-post)

  • Direct local elections take place at the hill district, district, union, municipal, and city corporation levels of government; the members of the subdistrict council are not directly elected by voters.
  • Cities, municipalities, and unions are divided into single-member wards for the purpose of local elections. Unions are divided into nine wards for general elected member elections, and into three wards for reserved seat member elections.

Electoral system for council chairpersons and mayors: majority/plurality (first-past-the-post)

  • The council chairperson/mayor is directly elected by voters.

Sources: Municipality Act, 2009 (amended through 2022), article 20; Union Parishad Act, 2009 (amended through 2015), article 10; District Council Act, 2000 (amended through 2022), articles 4 and 14; Upazila Parishad Act, 1998 (amended through 2015), article 6

Quotas

Gender quotas: Reserved seats

  • The following seats in each local deliberative body are reserved for women:
  • District Council:
    • 1/3 of the total number of District Council members;
    • 1/3 of the Chairperson’s Office
  • Subdistrict Council:
    • 1/3 of the total number of Union Councils and Municipal Corporations in every Subdistrict is equivalent to the number of seats reserved for women; and
    • 1/2 of the Chairperson’s Office
  • Union Council:
    • 3 seats; and
    • 1/3 of the Chairperson’s Office
  • Municipal Council:
    • 1/3 of the total number of Union Councils and Municipal Corporations in every Subdistrict is equivalent to the number of seats reserved for women; and
    • 1/3 of the Chairperson’s Office
  • City Council:
    • 1/3 of the total number of Union Councils and Municipal Corporations in every Subdistrict is equivalent to the number of seats reserved for women; and
    • 1/3 of the Chairperson’s Office.

Additional quotas: Tribal members

  • In the hill district council, there are twenty tribal members:
    • a) ten persons shall be elected from the Cakma tribe;
    • b) four persons shall be elected from the Marma tribe;
    • c) two persons shall be elected from the Tancainga tribe;
    • d) one person shall be elected from the Tripura tribe;
    • e) one person shall be elected from the Lusai tribe;
    • f) one person shall be elected from the Pankhu tribe;
    • g) one person shall be elected from the Kheyan tribe.
  • The chairperson is elected from among the tribal persons.

Sources: City Corporations Act, 2009 (amended through 2015), articles 5 and 20; Union Parishad Act, 2009 (amended through 2015), articles 3, 10 and 33; Municipality Act, 2009 (amended through 2022), articles 7 and 40; District Council Act, 2000 (amended through 2022), articles 4, 13 and 14; Upazila Parishad Act, 1998 (amended through 2015), article 6;  Rangamati Hill District Parishad Act, 1989 (amended through 2000), article 4

Term of elections
  • Term length: 3 years (in hill districts); 5 years
  • Last local elections: varies by locality: 2021
  • Next local elections: varies by locality: 2026
Electoral management body

Bangladesh Election Commission

National legal framework on local government
National legal framework
  • Constitution of the People's Republic of Bangladesh, 1972 (amended through 2018);
  • City Corporations Act, 2009 (amended through 2015);
  • Municipality Act, 2009 (amended through 2022);
  • Union Parishad Act, 2009 (amended through 2015);
  • District Council Act, 2000 (amended through 2022);
  • Upazila Parishad Act, 1998 (amended through 2015);
  • Rangamati Hill District Parishad Act, 1989 (amended through 2000);
  • Representation of the People Order, 1972 (amended through 2008).
Constitutional provisions on local government

There are constitutional provisions that establish local government in Bangladesh. According to Articles 59 and 60 of the Constitution of the People's Republic of Bangladesh of 1972 (amended through 2018), “local government in every administrative unit of the Republic shall be entrusted to bodies, composed of persons elected in accordance with law. Everybody such as is referred to in clause (1) shall, subject to this Constitution and any other law, perform within the appropriate administrative unit such functions as shall be prescribed by Act of Parliament, which may include functions relating to - (a) administration and the work of public officers; (b) the maintenance of public order; (c) the preparation and implementation of plans relating to public services and economic development. For the purpose of giving full effect to the provisions of article 59 Parliament shall, by law, confer powers on the local government bodies referred to in that article, including power to impose taxes for local purposes, to prepare their budgets and to maintain funds.”

Legislative provisions on local government

The National Assembly is responsible for establishing the national legal framework on local government. The key pieces of legislation that regulate local government are the City Corporations Act of 2009, the Municipality Act of 2009, the Union Parishad Act of 2009, the District Council Act of 2000, the Upazila Parishad Act of 1998, and the Rangamati Hill District Parishad Act of 1989.

Sources:

1. UN Women: Data on share of women in local government as of 1 January 2023.

2. UN Women: Information on Head of State and Government as of 3 October 2023.

3. Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU): Data on share of women in the single/lower chamber of parliament as of 1 January 2023.

4. IPU and UN Women: Data on share of women in ministerial positions as of 1 January 2023.

5. Information on local government organization as of 1 January 2023.