April 17, 2024
DHAKA – Although Bangladesh has ranked as one of the more prosperous nations among neighbouring countries in 2023, its freedoms have seen a gradual decline over the past 22 years, according to a US think tank report.
The report “Freedom and Prosperity in Bangladesh” prepared by Atlantic Council’s Freedom and Prosperity Center, categorises Bangladesh as “mostly unprosperous” in the Prosperity Index and “mostly unfree” in the Freedom Index.
The report was shared at a conference jointly organised by the US Agency for International Development and The Asia Foundation in the city yesterday.
The Freedom and Prosperity Indexes are two separate indexes that rank 164 countries around the world according to their levels of freedom and prosperity.
Bangladesh’s ranking of 141 out of 164 on the Freedom Index places it within the “mostly unfree” category.
In 2000, when Bangladesh held the 116th position, it experienced its peak in freedom, outperforming neighbouring countries with a score more than four points higher than the regional average for South and Central Asia.
“However, the trajectory has been less favourable since then, with a steady decline in freedom. Presently, Bangladesh finds itself trailing behind [the neighbours]…This decline highlights a concerning trend that warrants attention and analysis.”
According to the report, in 2022, Bangladesh was positioned eighth among the twelve South and Central Asian countries included in the study, indicating a middling performance in terms of freedom when compared to its regional counterparts. Notably, countries like Bhutan, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka all boast greater degrees of freedom than Bangladesh.
For instance, Pakistan, which holds the seventh spot in the region, outpaces Bangladesh by a notable margin of 11.5 points. Within the region, only three countries—Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan—score lower than Bangladesh in this regard.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh’s ranking of 99 out of 164 on the Prosperity Index, categorises it as “mostly unprosperous.”
Thanks to this broad definition of prosperity, Bangladesh outperforms some of its neighbours on the overall prosperity score, including India and Pakistan, although the country remains behind India in terms of GDP per capita when adjusted for purchasing power parity.
“Although there have been notable advancements in areas like health and education, progress has been more modest in addressing issues of inequality and environmental sustainability, and has even worsened in terms of minority rights,” said the report.
The data shows that countries with greater freedom tend to enjoy higher levels of prosperity, while those with less freedom tend to have lower levels of prosperity. Countries that promote political and economic freedoms, along with strong legal systems, create an environment that’s more welcoming to foreign investors, said Joseph Lemoine, director of the Atlantic Council’s Freedom and Prosperity Center at the conference in the city.
“Every country grapples with issues like corruption and securing economic and political rights. The key lies not in avoiding problems, but in actively acknowledging and tackling them,” said US Ambassador to Bangladesh at yesterday’s event.