Bangladesh ranks 2nd in South Asia in reducing inequality: Oxfam
Improved policies and actions to reduce inequality during the first two years of the Covid-19 pandemic has led Bangladesh to be ranked second among the countries in South Asia in Commitment to Reducing Inequality Index 2022, finds a research by Oxfam and Development Finance International.
As per the research released on Tuesday, Bangladesh ranked 107th globally on the index, moving six notches up from the previous analysis in 2020.
The fourth edition of the index examined policies and actions of 161 governments during 2020-22, considering three pillars vital to reducing inequality: public services spending, progressive taxation and labour rights.
Bangladesh has performed better than Sri Lanka (111th), Nepal (112th), Bhutan (116th), India (123rd), Pakistan (126th), and Afghanistan (138th) in the index.
The Maldives topped in South Asia as it saw the biggest improvement in government policies to fight inequality during the pandemic, jumping 32 notches to rank 40th globally this year.
In the previous edition of the index released in 2020, Bangladesh ranked 113th globally and 5th in South Asia. In 2018, the country was in 148th position globally and 7th in South Asia.
In response to The Business Standard's query on Bangladesh's improvement, Ruud Huurman, global media lead (inequality) of Oxfam International, said Bangladesh has raised education and health budget shares in the total spending, but from a very low levels which has contributed in the country's performance in the index.
He also mentioned the country's improvement in the secondary school completion rate by the poorest, universal health coverage and old age pension coverage as key achievements in this regard.
Ruud Huurman prescribes increasing spending on social services including education, health and social protection for future improvement of the country's position.
On labour it needs to increase minimum wage, respect, and strengthen workers and unions rights and reduce the level of precarious employment, he added.
Bangladesh's performances in three pillars
Despite being among the bottom ten countries on the labour policy indicator, Bangladesh has jumped eight notches to rank 101st globally in the labour rights pillar from the previous 109th.
The labour rights pillar measures policy on labour rights including respect for union rights, legal protection for women workers, and minimum wages; coverage of rights for the unemployed and vulnerably employed; and impact measured by the Gini coefficient of labour income.
In the public services pillar, Bangladesh moved six notches to rank 136th globally from 142nd. This pillar describes government actions to fight inequality through public education, health, and social protection services.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh has dropped 15 notches in progressive taxation pillar, placing the country at the 47th position from 32nd.
The taxation pillar describes policy (whether the main types of tax are designed to reduce inequality); implementation (whether they are successfully collected); and the impact of policy and implementation combined on inequality.
It also describes whether countries are behaving like tax havens through harmful tax practices (HTP), depriving themselves and other countries of revenue.
Wealthy OECD countries at the top
Norway ranks first in the index as the previous year for policies aimed at reducing inequality, followed by Germany, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Japan, Denmark and New Zealand.
All of the top 10 are wealthy Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries.
Meanwhile, South Sudan continues to be at the bottom of the index followed by Liberia, Nigeria, Haiti, and Guinea.
Oxfam said, "Rich and poor countries alike have exacerbated an explosion of economic inequality since the outbreak of the pandemic from 2020."
The report highlighted that despite the biggest global health emergency in a century, half of low- and lower-middle-income countries cut health spending during the pandemic.
Meanwhile, the study found 143 countries out of 161 failed to increase taxation of the richest, and 11 countries inexcusably cut taxes on the rich.
Oxfam International Executive Director, Gabriela Bucher said, "Our index shows that most governments have completely failed to take the steps needed to counter the inequality explosion created by Covid-19."
"They ripped away public services when people needed them most and instead left billionaires and big corporations off the hook to reap record profits. There is some good news of valiant governments from the Caribbean to Asia bucking this trend, taking strong steps to keep inequality in check," she added.
