A decade of falling spree for the Bangladeshi passport
For the last ten years, the ranking of Bangladesh on this index has constantly been falling - without any hopes of improvement.
A passport can either be a portal to the world or act as a barrier to the travel freedom the holders seek.
The Henley Passport Index, that includes 199 passports and 227 travel destinations, is the most authoritative ranking of all the world's passports which is based on the number of destinations their holders can access without a prior visa.
According to the 2019 index published on July 2, Bangladesh ranks 99 out of 107 with a score of 40, sharing the position with Eritrea and Iran. This makes Bangladesh one of the least valuable passports in the world.
Moreover, for the last ten years, the ranking of Bangladesh on this index has constantly been falling - without any hopes of improvement.
Bangladesh was preceded by India, Myanmar, and Sri Lanka on positions 82, 95 and 96, respectively, each scoring 59, 46 and 43.
Singapore and Japan secured the first place on the Henley Passport Index, offering its citizens visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to a record total of 189 destinations.
Afghanistan has once again been labeled by the index as the least powerful passport in the world.
Among other Southeast Asian countries, Nepal and Pakistan followed Bangladesh and secured their positions on the index after the 100th mark – where the passports ranked 101 and 104 with scores of 38 and 31, successively.