India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, And Pakistan Forge Ahead With Booming Tourism, While Bangladesh’s Sector Crumbles Under Political Chaos And Heightened Security Threats

Published on September 13, 2025

India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, and Pakistan person seen singular maturation successful their tourism sectors, capitalizing connected governmental stability, beardown infrastructure, and divers attractions. In stark contrast, Bangladesh’s tourism manufacture is grappling pinch terrible setbacks owed to governmental instability, escalating information threats, and ongoing information concerns. These challenges, peculiarly astir taste practice sites and cardinal tourer destinations, person caused Bangladesh to autumn down its location counterparts successful world tourism rankings. As a result, nan state faces important barriers to harnessing its tourism potential, pinch governmental turmoil and deficiency of infrastructure hindering its expertise to compete connected nan world stage.

Bangladesh’s tourism manufacture has struggled to support gait pinch its South Asian counterparts, pinch a marked diminution successful 2024. The driblet successful tourism numbers is chiefly attributed to weakening governmental stability, information concerns, and nan wide deterioration of rule and order. The country’s tourism assemblage has grounded to turn arsenic expected, partially owed to these destabilizing factors.

The business is further exacerbated by attacks connected taste practice sites and accepted events, often carried retired by extremist groups. These attacks person near nan tourism manufacture successful a precarious position, arsenic overseas visitors consciousness unsafe owed to nan changeless targeting of cardinal taste landmarks. The masterminds down these attacks often spell unpunished, creating a consciousness of impunity among those who transportation retired these convulsive acts. This changeless threat of unit and unrest undermines nan information of tourists, contributing to nan diminution of nan tourism industry.

Unlike its South Asian neighbors, Bangladesh’s tourism assemblage is not a important contributor to its economy. The industry’s stock successful nan nationalist GDP is comparatively small, opinionated astatine only astir 3 percent. In comparison, different South Asian countries person managed to found overmuch stronger and much vibrant tourism sectors. Experts successful nan section person often described Bangladesh arsenic an “unfriendly” destination for visitors owed to ongoing governmental instability, a deficiency of infrastructure, and information concerns. While countries successful nan region person developed their tourism industries into thriving sectors, Bangladesh’s tourism assemblage remains underdeveloped and faces a steep uphill battle.

The challenges facing nan Bangladeshi tourism manufacture are not constricted to information issues. Other emerging concerns see nan deficiency of serene governmental settlements successful immoderate regions, specified arsenic nan Chittagong Hill Tracts. These areas person agelong been affected by governmental unrest, which continues to deter imaginable visitors. Furthermore, nan influx of refugees from neighboring countries into cardinal tourer destinations for illustration Cox’s Bazar has heightened information concerns, creating an further obstruction to attracting world tourists. These issues person importantly reduced nan number of visitors to nan country’s superior tourism hubs.

The World Economic Forum (WEF) precocious placed Bangladesh astatine 109th successful its 2024 Tourism and Travel Development Index, marking a important diminution from its 100th position successful 2021. This driblet successful nan rankings followed a play of gradual betterment since 2017, erstwhile Bangladesh was classed 125th. This caller descent successful nan rankings highlights nan deficiency of advancement and nan challenges nan state faces successful processing its tourism industry. A person look astatine neighboring countries reveals really overmuch much successful they person been successful fostering tourism growth.

While tourism contributes only 3 percent to Bangladesh’s GDP, it generates astir 10 percent of nan world GDP, pinch different South Asian nations experiencing acold higher contributions from nan sector. For instance, 1 neighboring state saw tourism net of USD 37 cardinal successful 2024, acold outstripping Bangladesh’s tourism revenue, which is estimated astatine nether USD 3 billion. These statistic intelligibly bespeak nan disparities betwixt Bangladesh and its neighbors successful position of tourism’s effect connected nan economy.

Another neighboring country, which has a robust tourism sector, saw its tourism income emergence significantly, contributing 6 percent to its GDP. This state attracted astir 1.2 cardinal overseas visitors successful 2024, while Bangladesh only hosted astir 650,000 overseas visitors. These numbers bespeak nan contrasting tourism performances betwixt Bangladesh and its neighbors. Despite facing its ain challenges, this neighboring state has been capable to create its tourism assemblage much effectively.

In addition, Pakistan, which classed higher than Bangladesh astatine 101st connected nan WEF’s 2024 index, has a thriving tourism manufacture that contributes complete 5 percent to its GDP. The country’s tourism assemblage generated astir USD 20 cardinal successful 2024, which is substantially higher than Bangladesh’s tourism earnings. This highlights nan important spread betwixt Bangladesh’s tourism manufacture and that of its neighbors successful position of some gross procreation and world recognition.

Sri Lanka, contempt its economical difficulties, has managed to turn its tourism sector. The state has seen an summation successful overseas tourer arrivals and a boost successful revenue. According to nan Asian Development Bank (ADB), 1 neighboring country’s tourism receipts grew from USD 32.2 cardinal successful 2023 to USD 35.02 cardinal successful 2024. Similarly, different neighboring state besides saw an summation successful its tourism income by USD 1.01 cardinal year-on-year, reaching USD 3.17 billion. This shows that contempt economical setbacks, tourism successful these countries continues to execute well, dissimilar successful Bangladesh.

One of nan cardinal obstacles to expanding Bangladesh’s tourism assemblage is nan deficiency of divers attractions. Many visitors sojourn nan aforesaid destinations without overmuch inducement to return. The deficiency of caller attractions and experiences makes it harder for Bangladesh to clasp visitors aliases pull repetition visitors. This absence of assortment successful nan tourism assemblage has contributed to stagnation successful nan industry, arsenic different countries connection divers experiences that cater to a broader scope of tourer interests.

Looking ahead, Bangladesh is preparing for its nationalist elections successful February 2025. This play is expected to bring further governmental instability, pinch convulsive clashes betwixt governmental parties and nan police. Protests and strikes are communal during predetermination periods, often starring to roadworthy blockages and disruptions successful regular life. These events create an unpredictable and unsafe environment, which is detrimental to nan tourism industry. Security experts person warned that nan business whitethorn not amended until good aft nan elections, further straining nan tourism sector.

India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, and Pakistan person seen important maturation successful their tourism sectors, while Bangladesh struggles pinch governmental instability, information threats, and information concerns, causing its tourism manufacture to lag behind. These challenges inhibit Bangladesh’s expertise to compete pinch its location counterparts, further impacting its world tourism standing.

The diminution of Bangladesh’s tourism manufacture is simply a analyzable issue, pinch aggregate contributing factors. Political instability, information concerns, nan deficiency of divers attractions, and nan absence of a supportive situation for tourism each play a domiciled successful limiting nan sector’s growth. As neighboring countries proceed to fortify their tourism industries, Bangladesh faces an uphill conflict to drawback up. If nan existent trends continue, Bangladesh’s tourism manufacture whitethorn proceed to lag behind, pinch nary contiguous prospects for improvement.