Global Peace Index: Bangladesh 9 notches down
Bangladesh continued its downward slip in terms of peace by dropping down nine spots in the Global Peace Index (GPI) 2018.
Despite making improvements in two indicators -- political stability and terrorism impact -- the positive changes were offset by a large fall in “external conflicts fought” and “neighbouring countries relations”, which stemmed from the sudden influx of about 700,000 Rohingya refugees from neighbouring Myanmar, according to the latest report.
Bangladesh ranked 93rd out of 163 countries with a global score of 2.084. Last year, its position was 84th with a score of 2.035.
Although Bangladesh was ranked the fourth most peaceful country in South Asia -- the eighth most peaceful region in the world -- faring better than India, Pakistan and Afghanistan, its deterioration was the largest in the region, according to the report.
The 12th annual Global Peace Index prepared by the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP), a Sydney-based independent non-profit think-tank, was published in London yesterday.
The IEP scored 163 independent states and territories according to their levels of peacefulness.
The report found the global level of peace has deteriorated by 0.27 percent in the last year, marking the fourth successive year of deteriorations.
Ninety-two countries deteriorated, while 71 improved.
The report also found that average level of country peacefulness has deteriorated in eight out of the past ten years.
The 2018 GPI reveals a world in which tensions, conflicts, and crises that emerged in the past decade remained unresolved, especially in the Middle East, resulting in this gradual, sustained fall in peacefulness.
Iceland retained its top spot as the most peaceful country in the world for the tenth year. It was followed by New Zealand, Austria, Portugal, and Denmark.
Syria remains the least peaceful country in the world, a position it has held for the past five years, since the outbreak of the war. Afghanistan, South Sudan, Iraq, and Somalia comprise the remaining least peaceful countries.
The index used numerous indicators to reach the conclusions, including numbers and duration of internal conflicts, deaths from external and internal conflicts, impact of terrorism and militarisation, among other things.
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