Bangladesh has surpassed Pakistan in Digital Societies Index, according to a recent global index.
The index – Digital societies in Asia Pacific: Accelerating progress through collaboration – was published by GSMA Intelligence on Saturday.
According to the index, Bangladesh scored 42 points out of 100, compared to Pakistan at 39 and India at 54 points.
However, Bangladesh scored lowest in the Asia Pacific region for its poor services despite an ongoing expansion of 4G connectivity across the country.
“While most developed nations are preparing to roll out 5G networks, emerging nations are still strengthening 4G coverage,” the index said.
The digital society index uses five main components of a digital society - connectivity, digital identity, digital citizenship, digital lifestyle, and digital commerce - to show the progress of a country along its path to becoming a full-fledged digital society.
"4G population coverage has also risen significantly in Bangladesh, reaching 97 per cent in 2020, up from just 8.0 per cent in 2016," the report added.
In terms of digital lifestyle, Bangladesh scored 48 points, only one point ahead of Pakistan at 47.
"Bangladesh saw a surge in demand for telemedicine during the pandemic, leading to the establishment of 15 digital healthcare providers," the GSMA said.
However, Bangladesh scored as low as 21 points in digital commerce.
Meanwhile, Singapore scored 82, Japan 82, Malaysia 74, Thailand 67, Vietnam 61, and Indonesia 58, according to the index.
