# Bangladesh and Pakistan compared

Bangladesh and Pakistan side by side: 41 shared sourced indicators across 9 domains, and the 8 events their chronicles record of each other.

Canonical: https://terralore.co/compare/bgd-vs-pak
Updated: 2026-08-10 (latest of the two dossiers' refreshes and the two chronicles' verification dates)

Two sourced records set beside each other — nothing on this page was written for the pair. Every figure is the same observation, with the same source, as on the two national dossiers; every event is the same record, with the same sources, as on its own chronicle. Figures are compared, never graded. A "—" is an absence in the source data, never a zero; each value shows its own observation year — vintages differ by indicator and nation.

## Formation

- Bangladesh: 26 March 1971 — Sheikh Mujibur Rahman declares the independence of Bangladesh
- Pakistan: 14 August 1947 — The Dominion of Pakistan emerges from the partition of British India

## Economy

| Metric | Bangladesh | Observed | Pakistan | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GDP | $450 B | 2024 | $372 B | 2024 |
| GDP per capita | $2,593 | 2024 | $1,479 | 2024 |
| GDP growth | 4.2% | 2024 | 3.0% | 2024 |
| Inflation | 10.5% | 2024 | 12.6% | 2024 |
| Trade openness | 26.8% | 2024 | 27.6% | 2024 |

## Society

| Metric | Bangladesh | Observed | Pakistan | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 174 m | 2024 | 251 m | 2024 |
| Life expectancy | 74.9 yrs | 2024 | 67.8 yrs | 2024 |
| Urban population | 32.7% | 2024 | 39.2% | 2024 |
| Fertility rate | 2.1 | 2024 | 3.5 | 2024 |

## Governance

| Metric | Bangladesh | Observed | Pakistan | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Voice & accountability | 36.5 | 2024 | 36.4 | 2024 |
| Political stability | 40.9 | 2024 | 30.6 | 2024 |
| Government effectiveness | 39.3 | 2024 | 39.7 | 2024 |
| Regulatory quality | 39.9 | 2024 | 42.4 | 2024 |
| Rule of law | 40.4 | 2024 | 39.5 | 2024 |
| Control of corruption | 25.5 | 2024 | 26.3 | 2024 |

## Health

| Metric | Bangladesh | Observed | Pakistan | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health spending | 2.2% | 2023 | 2.5% | 2023 |
| Physicians | 0.72 | 2023 | 1.16 | 2021 |
| Under-5 mortality | 30.5 | 2024 | 56.0 | 2024 |
| Measles immunisation | 96.0% | 2024 | 86.0% | 2024 |
| Safe drinking water | 59.1% | 2024 | 45.0% | 2024 |

## Education

| Metric | Bangladesh | Observed | Pakistan | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adult literacy | 79.0% | 2022 | 58.9% | 2021 |
| Education spending | 2.0% | 2024 | 1.9% | 2023 |
| Primary enrolment | 106.5% | 2024 | 83.7% | 2024 |
| Secondary enrolment | 64.3% | 2024 | 48.3% | 2024 |
| Tertiary enrolment | 23.7% | 2024 | 10.9% | 2024 |

## Technology

| Metric | Bangladesh | Observed | Pakistan | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Internet users | 53.4% | 2024 | 57.3% | 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptions | 108 | 2024 | 77 | 2024 |
| High-tech exports | 0.5% | 2018 | 2.4% | 2024 |
| R&D spending | — | — | 0.2% | 2023 |
| Researchers (per million) | — | — | 474 | 2023 |

## Geography

| Metric | Bangladesh | Observed | Pakistan | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Land area | 129,980 km² | 2023 | 770,880 km² | 2023 |
| Forest area | 14.5% | 2023 | 4.7% | 2023 |
| Agricultural land | 72.3% | 2023 | 46.7% | 2023 |
| CO₂ per capita (t) | 0.7 | 2024 | 0.8 | 2024 |
| Renewable energy | 25.0% | 2021 | 41.6% | 2021 |

## Resources

| Metric | Bangladesh | Observed | Pakistan | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Resource rents | 0.6% | 2021 | 1.4% | 2021 |
| Oil rents | 0.0% | 2021 | 0.4% | 2021 |
| Mineral rents | 0.0% | 2021 | 0.1% | 2021 |
| Forest rents | 0.1% | 2021 | 0.1% | 2021 |
| Electricity access | 99.5% | 2023 | 95.6% | 2023 |

## Military

| Metric | Bangladesh | Observed | Pakistan | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Military burden | 0.9% | 2024 | 2.7% | 2024 |
| Defense spending | $4.0 B | 2024 | $10 B | 2024 |
| Armed forces | 227,000 | 2020 | 943,000 | 2020 |

Each metric is also ranked across all nations: https://terralore.co/rankings (markdown twins at /rankings/<metric>.md). Full dossiers: https://terralore.co/country/BGD.md and https://terralore.co/country/PAK.md.

## Entangled histories (8 events)

Events in which either nation's sourced chronicle names the other — including under earlier names of the same state. Each is the record exactly as its own chronicle carries it, with that chronicle's sources.

- 14 Aug 1947: **Independence of Pakistan** — Pakistan becomes independent under the Indian Independence Act, with Jinnah as Governor-General and Liaquat Ali Khan as prime minister, comprising West and East Pakistan. (from the Pakistan chronicle; sources: Mohammed Ali Jinnah; Indian Independence Act)
- 1947: **Partition creates East Pakistan** — The partition of British India makes Muslim-majority eastern Bengal into East Pakistan, a wing of the new state separated from its western half by a thousand miles of India. (from the Bangladesh chronicle; sources: History of Bangladesh)
- 21 Feb 1952: **The Bengali Language Movement** — Students in Dhaka demanding that Bengali be a state language of Pakistan are shot by police; the martyrs become foundational to Bengali nationalism and, later, to UNESCO's International Mother Language Day. (from the Bangladesh chronicle; sources: Language Movement; International Mother Language Day)
- 1966: **The Awami League's Six-Point demand** — Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's Awami League issues a six-point programme for the political and economic autonomy of East Pakistan, the charter of Bengali self-determination. (from the Bangladesh chronicle; sources: Mujibur Rahman; Awami League)
- Dec 1970: **Awami League wins the election** — The Awami League secures 167 of the 169 East Pakistani seats and a National Assembly majority; West Pakistan's refusal to hand over power ignites the crisis that leads to war. (from the Bangladesh chronicle; sources: Mujibur Rahman; Awami League)
- 26 Mar 1971: **Declaration of independence** — After the Pakistani army launches Operation Searchlight on 25 March, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman proclaims Bangladesh's independence on 26 March, beginning the Liberation War. (from the Bangladesh chronicle; sources: Bangladesh Liberation War; Mujibur Rahman)
- 16 Dec 1971: **Loss of East Pakistan and birth of Bangladesh** — After a brutal war and Indian intervention, Pakistani forces surrender at Dhaka and East Pakistan becomes the independent state of Bangladesh, dismembering the country. (from the Pakistan chronicle; sources: Bangladesh Liberation War; 1971 India-Pakistan War)
- 16 Dec 1971: **Victory and the birth of Bangladesh** — After a nine-month war in which possibly a million Bengalis were killed and ten million fled to India, Indian forces intervene and the Pakistani army surrenders at Dhaka, founding the People's Republic of Bangladesh. (from the Bangladesh chronicle; sources: Bangladesh Liberation War)

## Sources

- World Development Indicators — World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-14 · https://data.worldbank.org
- Worldwide Governance Indicators (via World Bank API) — Worldwide Governance Indicators / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/worldwide-governance-indicators
- Global Health Observatory (WHO, via World Bank WDI) — WHO / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.who.int/data/gho
- Child mortality & immunisation estimates (UN IGME and WHO/UNICEF, via World Bank WDI) — UNICEF and WHO / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://childmortality.org
- R&D statistics (UNESCO UIS, via World Bank WDI) — UNESCO Institute for Statistics / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-15 · https://uis.unesco.org
- ICT indicators (ITU, via World Bank WDI) — ITU / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-15 · https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Statistics
- Military Expenditure Database (via World Development Indicators) — SIPRI / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-14 · https://www.sipri.org/databases/milex

Chronicle references are cited inline above and resolve in full at https://terralore.co/country/BGD/chronicle.md and https://terralore.co/country/PAK/chronicle.md.

Citation template: Terralore, "Bangladesh and Pakistan compared", terralore.co/compare/bgd-vs-pak, retrieved <YYYY-MM-DD>.