Has the IMF projected that Bangladesh would overtake India in per capita GDP?

Among all the things that the IMF said in its report, one thing that stood out was that Bangladesh would overtake India’s GDP per capita by 2021 and consistently beat India’s per capital GDP by 2024. The worry is that this advantage could be on a sustained basis.

India had overtaken Pakistan long back and inched close to India’s GDP per capita figure of $2000. That was on the cards but now IMF has confirmed that Bangladesh would not only overtake India but also sustain the gap over India.

In the last twenty years, Bangladesh has not only shown a smart approach when it comes to attracting FDI but also made some smart social investments in healthcare and primary education. As a result, Bangladesh ranks above India on most social growth parameters.

All these efforts are now translating into higher GDP per capita. It is not just about population because Bangladesh is also very densely populated. That surely has a lesson or two for India as it impacts its influence in the South Asian region.