WEF tourism index: Bangladesh remains lowest in Asia-Pacific

Bangladesh has ranked 98th out of 110 economies in the Travel and Tourism Development Index 2026.

Bangladesh has ranked 98th out of 110 economies in the Travel and Tourism Development Index 2026, once again coming in last among the Asia-Pacific countries assessed in a World Economic Forum’s (WEF) travel and tourism study.

The country ranked 109th among 119 economies in the 2024 edition, with a score of 3.19 out of 7. It was also placed last among both Asia-Pacific and South Asian economies.

In the latest edition, Bangladesh’s score rose to 3.34 – still below the global average score of 4.1 – while its ranking remained the lowest among the five South Asian and 18 Asia-Pacific economies assessed.

The biennial index, published on Friday in collaboration with Zurich Insurance Group, measured the set of factors and policies that enable the sustainable and resilient development of the travel and tourism sector.

Khondaker Golam Moazzem, president of the Knowledge Hub Institute, told The Business Standard, “Bangladesh has considerable natural and environmental tourism resources, but the supporting infrastructure and other facilities needed to attract tourists have not developed adequately.”

“Another major challenge is Bangladesh’s limited ability to attract foreign tourists. Tourism here mostly remains dependent on domestic visitors, while many foreign visitors come for work rather than tourism and often stay for only one or two nights,” he said.

The economist opined that Bangladesh needs to focus on attracting international tourists, religious, nature-based and regional travellers.

“The tourism sector also remains highly bureaucratic. Unless greater private sector participation is ensured in policymaking, operations and the development of the sector’s logistical structure, it will be difficult to create the tourist-friendly infrastructure and sustainability required for tourism development,” said Moazzem.

India stayed as a top-performing tourist destination in South Asia, ranking 31st with a score of 4.42, followed by Sri Lanka at 69th with 3.85, Nepal at 86th with 3.55 and Pakistan at 95th with 3.42.

The index comprises 17 pillars and 102 indicators, organised into five dimensions: enabling environment, travel and tourism, policy and enabling conditions, infrastructure and services, resources, and sustainability.

Among the dimensions, Bangladesh performed the best in travel and tourism resources, which captured the principal “reasons to travel” to a destination and consisted of three pillars including natural, cultural, and non-leisure resources.

Meanwhile, the country performed the worst in the travel and tourism sustainability dimension, which reflected the current or potential sustainability challenges and risks facing travel and tourism.

The country performed worst in the assessment of visa requirements, number of air service agreements, TRAVELSAT hospitality reputation index, and passport mobility score.

Along with that, Bangladesh also did the worst in the tourist services and infrastructure segment.

Globally, high-income economies continue to be the top performing tourist destinations, with Japan taking the first slot after overtaking the United States, which now ranks second, followed by Spain, Australia and France.

Despite ongoing geopolitical, economic and environmental challenges, a record 1.5 billion tourist arrivals were registered globally in 2025, with around 307 million people travelling internationally in just the first quarter of 2026 – a clear sign that the travel and tourism industry has not only recovered from the pandemic downturn but is actively thriving, said the WEF.