The Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh (, ) was constituted by the Constitution of Bangladesh comprising the executive (the President, Prime Minister and the Cabinet), the legislature (the Jatiya Sangsad), and the judiciary (the Supreme Court). Bangladesh is a unitary state and the central government has the authority to govern over the entirety of the nation. The seat of the government is located in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh.
The executive government is led by the Prime Minister, who selects all the remaining ministers. The Prime Minister and the other most senior ministers belong to the supreme decision-making committee, known as the Cabinet. After the resignation of Sheikh Hasina in August 2024, an interim government was formed with Muhammad Yunus as chief adviser, serving until the 13th general elections held in February 12th, 2026. The current cabinet is led by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party.
The President serves as the head of state, primarily performing ceremonial duties, while the Prime Minister, as the head of government, holds actual executive authority. The President is also the Commander-in-Chief of the Bangladesh Armed Forces. The President is elected by the legislature for a five-year term and normally exercises limited powers, which are substantially expanded during the tenure of a caretaker government to oversee the transition to a new administration. Bangladesh has a unique system for the transfer of power: at the end of a governmentâÂÂs term, authority is temporarily handed over to a non-partisan caretaker government, drawn from civil society, for three months to conduct general elections and transfer power to the newly elected representatives. This system was first practiced in 1991 and was incorporated into the Constitution through the 14th Amendment in 1996.
As head of state, the President has the power to grant pardons, commute death sentences, or reduce punishments. In certain circumstances, the President also performs limited legislative and judicial functions as provided by the Constitution.
The Prime Minister is the head of government of Bangladesh. In accordance with Article 56(3) of the Constitution, the Prime Minister is ceremonially appointed by the President from among the Members of Parliament who, in the PresidentâÂÂs opinion, command the support of the majority of members.
The cabinet, headed by the Prime Minister, consists of selected ministers who collectively exercise executive authority under the Constitution. As head of government, the Prime Minister holds the supreme executive power and directs the overall governance of Bangladesh.
The executive branch of the Government of Bangladesh, the Bangladesh Secretariat, administers the state and implements laws enacted by the Jatiya Sangsad. It is responsible for maintaining internal law and order, conducting foreign relations, and protecting the defence, independence, and sovereignty of the country.
The Cabinet is headed by the Prime Minister and consists of Cabinet Ministers, Ministers of State, and Deputy Ministers. According to the Constitution of Bangladesh, all members of the Cabinet must be members of the Jatiya Sangsad, or they must be elected to the Parliament within six months after their appointment.
Each ministry is led politically by a Minister and administered by a Secretary, a senior civil servant who oversees policy implementation and manages the overall operation of the ministry and its subordinate divisions.
The executive calculates the income and expenditure of the government. It also performs various public welfare services such as; education, agriculture, establishment of industry, trade and commerce, land reform, tax and revenue collection. Beside this, it also accepts and implements various development projects.
The legislature of Bangladesh is unicameral. Called the Jatiya Sangsad in Bengali, it is the parliament of Bangladesh. The Speaker presides over meetings of the Jatiya Sangsad and conducts its business in an orderly fashion. The current Jatiya Sangsad contains 350 seats, including 50 seats reserved exclusively for women and 300 seats for elected members, which are apportioned on elected party positions in the parliament. The thirteenth parliamentary elections were held on 12th February, 2026. The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (abbreviated BNP), led by Party Chairman Tarique Rahman have won a landslide victory, and have assumed office since 17th February, 2026. Hafiz Uddin Ahmad is serving as the current Speaker of the Jatiya Sangsad.
At the local government level, the country is administratively structured into divisions, districts, subdistricts (upazilas), unions, and villages. The lowest level of local government representation are the local officials of the union councils, who are elected at the union level election. All larger administrative units are run by members of the civil service.