Bangladesh has deteriorated by two steps in the democracy index. The position of Bangladesh is now 75th in this index.
The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), based in London, published the 'Democracy Index 2023' on Wednesday (February 14).
This year's index has been created with 165 countries and regions. Bangladesh scores 5.87 out of 10 in the index which is the lowest score in the last year.
Bangladesh was ranked 73rd in the 2022 index. The score was 5.99. The position of Bangladesh was 75th with the same score in the 2021 index. The position of Bangladesh was 76th with the same score in the 2020 index.
The index measures the state of democracy in countries around the world based on five key factors. The topics are electoral process and pluralism, effectiveness of government, political participation, political culture and civil liberties.
The index divides countries and regions into four categories. These are full democracy, flawed democracy, hybrid regime and authoritarian regime.
This time again Bangladesh is in the hybrid governance category. Countries with scores between 4 and 6 out of 10 are in this category. Hybrid regimes define countries where electoral irregularities are substantial. Besides, in these countries there is government pressure on opposition parties and candidates.
Bangladesh is ranked third among seven countries in South Asia in the report. India tops the list with a score of 7.41. Pakistan is at 118th place with a score of 3.25 in this list of 165 countries. Pakistan has deteriorated by 14 points in this index compared to last year.
Sri Lanka is ranked 70th with a score of 6.17. Last year the country was ranked 67th but this year it has deteriorated. Bhutan is ranked 81st with a score of 5.54, same as last year. The country was in the same position last year as well. And compared to last year, Nepal has risen to the 98th position by improving by two steps. The country's score is 4.60.
War-torn Afghanistan is at the bottom of the list. Myanmar, under a dictatorship, is ranked 166th. The country's score is zero decimal 85. In addition, North Korea, a Korean island almost isolated from the world, is in 165th place with a score of 1.08.
In this index, the Nordic country Norway is on top like last time with a score of 9.81. New Zealand ranks second in this year's index as of 2022. The country's score is 9.61. Finland is in third place with a score of 9.45. It is followed by Sweden (4th) with a score of 9.39, Finland in fifth (score 9.30), Denmark in 6th (score 9.28), Ireland in 7th (score 9.19), Switzerland in 8th (score 8.99). The Netherlands is ninth (score 9.00) and Taiwan is tenth with a score of 8.92.