Inflation and Economic Downturn Among Bangladesh’s Major Future Challenges, Warns WEF in Global Risks Report 2025
Dhaka, Bangladesh – January 16, 2025
The World Economic Forum (WEF) has identified inflation and economic downturn as two of the foremost economic challenges that Bangladesh is likely to face in the coming years, according to its recently published Global Risks Report 2025. Alongside these concerns, the report highlights extreme weather events, pollution, and unemployment or lack of economic opportunity as additional critical risks confronting the country.
Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, the WEF released the report on Wednesday, which assesses the principal risks faced by countries globally through varied timeframes, enabling policymakers and business leaders to prepare for both immediate and long-term challenges.
Key Risks for Bangladesh
While the report takes a broad global perspective and does not delve deeply into country-specific details, it notes several pressing issues relevant to Bangladesh’s context:
- Inflation and Economic Downturn: Persistent inflationary pressures coupled with an economic slowdown threaten Bangladesh’s financial stability and growth prospects.
- Extreme Weather Events: Floods and heatwaves are increasingly frequent and intense, posing grave risks to life, agriculture, and infrastructure.
- Pollution: Bangladesh, as a densely populated nation, faces significant environmental hazards from air and water pollution, which rank among the country’s three most pressing risks, echoing concerns in similarly affected countries like India.
- Unemployment and Economic Opportunity: A lack of employment opportunities could exacerbate poverty and social challenges, impacting socio-economic progress.
The report also discussed global risks beyond Bangladesh’s borders. It ranked the following as the most significant worldwide threats identified by over 900 global risk experts, policymakers, and industry leaders surveyed in late 2024:
- State-based armed conflict
- Extreme weather events
- Geo-economic confrontation
- Misinformation and disinformation
- Societal polarization
- Economic downturn
- Critical changes to earth systems
- Lack of economic opportunity/unemployment
- Erosion of human rights
- Inequality
Broader Global Context
The WEF report emphasized that state-based armed conflict has emerged as the top immediate risk for 2025, cited by nearly a quarter of respondents, reflecting ongoing geopolitical tensions and divisions across regions. Misinformation and disinformation were identified as short-term risks with the potential to fuel instability and erode public trust in institutions, thereby complicating crisis response efforts.
Environmental concerns dominate the longer-term horizon, with extreme weather, loss of biodiversity, and ecosystem collapse highlighted as significant threats that require urgent attention.
Bangladesh’s Previous Risk Factors
Comparatively, the 2024 edition of the WEF report underlined six risks specifically for Bangladesh: energy supply shortages, inflation, economic downturn, inequality, public debt, and unemployment. These challenges remain relevant as the country continues to navigate economic and environmental uncertainties.
Implications for Policymakers
This latest assessment underscores the urgent need for Bangladesh’s policymakers, business leaders, and civil society to coordinate efforts that address economic vulnerabilities while enhancing resilience to environmental and social risks. Prioritizing sustainable development, pollution control, disaster preparedness, job creation, and inflation management will be critical to securing Bangladesh’s future prosperity.
This report was compiled by FE Report. For more updates on finance news in Bangladesh, visit The Financial Express website or subscribe to their e-paper.
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