By Bangladesh is compared with Sri Lanka for the economic downturn. However, those in power are rubbishing these comparisons.
They believe Bangladesh is still better at controlling its economy than Sri Lanka.
As Aljazeera Geopolitical columnist Shafqat Rabbee points out there are at least three key similarities between both the countries These are authoritarianism under dynastic rule; corruption and cronyism; and debt-fuelled vanity projects.
On the financial front, Bangladesh seems to do ok at the moment, according to Shafqat Rabbee ‘Bangladesh’s GDP is about the size of the Pakistani and Sri Lankan economies combined. Bangladesh’s foreign currency reserves are $39bn, more than twice the $18bn of those two neighbors together.”
http:// https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2022/8/25/why-the-sri-lankan-collapse-looms-so-large-over-bangladesh
According to the finance ministry, Bangladesh’s total debt-to-GDP ratio stands at a manageable 31 percent, compared with 119 percent for Sri Lanka.
Shafqat Rabbee has an important question to ask
Given the above backdrop, why are Bangladeshis concerned about their country sliding, like Sri Lanka, into an economic collapse?
The answer lies not so much in economic statistics but in Many other socio-political factors.
