Bangladesh shows improvement in Global Freedom Index

Bangladesh has made significant progress in the 2024 Global Freedom Index, improving by five points, rising from a score of 40 in 2023 to 45 in the previous year, according to the latest report from the Washington-based democracy research organization 'Freedom House'.

The 'Freedom House' report, published on Wednesday (February 26), highlights that Bangladesh is among the four countries showing the most significant improvement in this year's index. Alongside Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, and Syria also saw improvements.

The annual 'Freedom in the World' report notes a global decline in freedom in 2023, with many authoritarian regimes tightening their control. However, it also points to "glimmers of hope" for freedom in South Asia, with Bangladesh's improvement being a key example.

Two countries—Senegal and Bhutan—have been newly classified as 'free' in the 2024 Freedom Index, reflecting positive changes in their political landscapes.

Meanwhile, neighboring India was rated as 'partly free' with a score of 63, down from 66 last year. This marks a continued decline for India, which was previously classified as 'free' in 2021.

The report also noted that political rights and civil liberties have declined in 60 countries, while 34 countries experienced improvements. El Salvador, Haiti, Kuwait, and Tunisia were the nations with the most significant declines in their freedom scores. Of these, El Salvador (47) and Tunisia (44) are rated as 'partly free,' while Haiti (24) and Kuwait (31) are considered 'not free.'

'Freedom House' assessed the political rights and civil liberties of 195 countries and 13 territories to compile the rankings for the 2024 Freedom Index.