Global Knowledge Index: Bangladesh ranks lowest in South Asia

Bangladesh ranked 112th out of 138 countries in the Global Knowledge Index 2020, indicating the country's weak performance in terms of knowledge infrastructure. 

Even though Bangladesh improved its overall score by 0.9 points to 35.9, it remains below the global average of 46.7, mentions the index unveiled by the United Nations Development Programme and the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Knowledge Foundation on Wednesday.

The country also held the same position compared to the 2019 index, ranked 19th out of 24 countries with medium human development, and performed the worst in the higher education sector.

Switzerland is a leading performer in terms of its knowledge infrastructure, and the country retained its number-one rank for the fourth year in the index, followed by the United States and Finland.

Six of the countries reviewed under the index are in South Asia. With an overall score of 44.4, neighbouring India topped the index in the region, and ranked 75th globally. Sri Lanka placed second in the region with 2.3 points less than India. It ranked 87th globally.

Bhutan, Nepal and Pakistan ranked third, fourth and fifth in the region, scoring 40.9, 36.2 and 35.9 respectively. On a surprising note, Vietnam, only four years younger than Bangladesh and the country's top RMG competitor, ranked 66th in the 2020 index, 46 spots ahead of Bangladesh.

The index was based on 133 variables under seven sectors – pre-university education; technical and vocational education and training; higher education; research, development and innovation; information and communications technology; economy; and general enabling environment.

Bangladesh's score and rank across sectors

Pre-university education is the first sector the other sectors build upon. It represents knowledge capital and an enabling environment. Bangladesh ranked 117th with a score of 43.9 in this sector.

The country did relatively better in the Technical and Vocational Education and Training sector. Where it placed 69th with a score of 49. The indicator shows the linkage between education and the labour market.

Bangladesh is the worst performer in the higher education sector. The country ranked 129th with a score of 24.1. This sector indicates educating the youth, developing their qualifications, and expanding their knowledge and skills with a view to improving the country's productivity and competitiveness in global markets.

The country achieved only 16.4 in the Research, Development & Innovation sector and ranked 96th. Moreover, Bangladesh ranked 97th with a score 43.1 in the ICT sector. These sectors help increase knowledge in national and regional levels and play an essential role in supporting the advancement of knowledge across all sectors.

Knowledge Economy is the main driver of sustainable development, wealth creation, and job creation in various economic fields, across the industrial, agricultural, and service sectors. Bangladesh ranked 114th in this sector with a score of 31.5.

The General Enabling Environment supports the 6 sectoral indices, as these sectors do not operate in isolation. Bangladesh ranked 115 with a score of 46.4.

Commenting on the lackluster performance of Bangladesh, Professor at the Economics Department of Dhaka University, Dr Selim Raihan said, "This is very frustrating and there is no doubt that we have gaps in the seven sector mentioned by the Global Knowledge Index 2020.

Also the executive director of the South Asian Network on Economic Modeling (SANEM), Dr Raihan said, "The preparation for the required jump in knowledge generation and technology for progress and development is not enough.

"We are lacking in our policy level in these selected areas of the index too. In the present global context, Bangladesh is falling behind in the necessary generation of knowledge, skill development, and investment in research and development."

About ranking lowest in South Asia, Dr Raihan Said, "It is very sad that the South Asian countries, which should rank behind Bangladesh as we expect, are placing higher than us. One of the reasons behind it could be the large population and their calculation on per capita terms.

"But I think we need to focus more on these sectors to face future development challenges, rather than comparing with other countries. And there will be a big miss-match if we are not able to develop a skilled labour force and put more emphasis on research and innovation in parallel with the economic development policies such as the economic zones." 

He added that this issue could cause the objectives of many economic policies to become unrealised.

"The report reflects our narrow skills, which are also not diversified. Although we emphasise a lot on training, we need to spend a lot on research, innovation, knowledge creation and skill development," he added.