Teknaf ( Ṭeknaf) is an upazila of Cox's Bazar District in the Division of Chittagong, Bangladesh. It forms the southernmost point in mainland Bangladesh (St. Martin's Island is the southernmost point). The name of the region comes from the Naf River which forms the Eastern boundary of the upazila. It shares a border with Myanmar, opposite the town of Maungdaw.

Geography

Teknaf is located at 20.8667°N, 92.3°W. It has 23,675 households and a total area of 388.66 km2. The tidal range at the Teknaf coastal area is strongly influenced by the Naaf river estuary. The area has a warm tropical climate and sufficient rainfall to enable it to support a wide biological diversity. Teknaf Peninsula is one of the longest sandy beach ecosystems (80 km) in the world. It represents a transitional ground for the fauna of the Indo-Himalayan and Indo-Malayan ecological sub-regions. Important habitats at the site include mangrove, mudflats, beaches and sand dunes, canals and lagoons and marine habitat. Mangrove forest occurs in Teknaf peninsula both as natural forest with planted stands and mostly distributed in the inter-tidal zone. The Teknaf peninsula mangroves support the habitat of 161 different species of fish. Teknaf reserved forest is one of the oldest reserved forests in Bangladesh.

Climate

Teknaf has a tropical monsoon climate (Am) with warm, dry winters and warm, extremely rainy summers.

Demographics

As of the 2022 Bangladeshi census, Teknaf Upazila had 66,597 households and a population of 333,865. The literacy rate (age 7 and over) was 64.4% and the sex ratio was 102.6 females per 100 males. 208,911 (62.6%) of the population lived in urban areas. The ethnic population was 4010 (1.2%), of whom 2337 were Chakma, 992 Rakhine and 467 Tanchangya. According to the 1991 Bangladesh census, Teknaf had a population of 152,557. Males constituted 51.81% of the population, and females 48.19%. The population aged 18 or over was 64,417. Teknaf had an average literacy rate of 16.6% (7+ years), against the national average of 32.4%.

Administration

Teknaf Upazila is divided into Teknaf Municipality and six union parishads: Baharchara, Hnila, Sabrang, Saint Martin, Teknaf, and Whykong. The union parishads are subdivided into 12 mauzas and 146 villages. Teknaf Municipality is subdivided into 9 wards and 16 mahallas.