{"id":296259,"date":"2026-02-22T06:22:15","date_gmt":"2026-02-22T06:22:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/296259\/"},"modified":"2026-02-22T06:22:15","modified_gmt":"2026-02-22T06:22:15","slug":"what-bangladesh-can-learn-from-sri-lankas-debt-crisis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/296259\/","title":{"rendered":"What Bangladesh can learn from Sri Lanka’s debt crisis"},"content":{"rendered":"

A recent study by researchers from SOAS University of London, comparing the two countries, warns that similar policy patterns could heighten long-term risks if corrective steps are delayed. <\/p>\n

\n TBS Report\n <\/p>\n

\n 21 February, 2026, 11:20 am <\/p>\n

\n Last modified: 21 February, 2026, 11:27 am <\/p>\n

\n Representational image. Photo: Collected<\/p>\n

“> <\/p>\n

\"Representational<\/p>\n

\n Representational image. Photo: Collected <\/p>\n

Sri Lanka’s 2022 sovereign default offers a cautionary lesson for Bangladesh as external borrowing rises and large infrastructure projects expand.<\/p>\n

A recent study by researchers from SOAS University of London, comparing the two countries, warns that similar policy patterns could heighten long-term risks if corrective steps are delayed.<\/p>\n

From around 2008, both Bangladesh and Sri Lanka shifted towards infrastructure-led growth, investing heavily in ports, highways and energy facilities, often financed through external partners.<\/p>\n


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In Sri Lanka’s case, about 65% of foreign debt accumulated during that period was linked to energy projects, many of which were underutilised and generated limited economic returns.<\/p>\n

The result was rising debt without sufficient growth to service it.<\/p>\n

The study notes that Bangladesh’s external debt has grown rapidly in recent years, alongside significant cost escalations in major infrastructure projects.<\/p>\n

Projects awarded through non-competitive government-to-government arrangements were found to be substantially more expensive than those procured through transparent bidding.<\/p>\n

Weak oversight and overpricing increase repayment burdens over time.<\/p>\n

One key lesson from Sri Lanka is that crises can emerge suddenly.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Gradual increases in debt indicators may appear manageable, but vulnerability surfaces when a country struggles to meet interest or principal payments on time.<\/p>\n

The researchers warn that Bangladesh could face a more exposed period between 2028 and 2032 if governance weaknesses persist.<\/p>\n

To avoid such a scenario, the study recommends tighter expenditure control, stronger domestic revenue mobilisation and improved project governance.<\/p>\n

Ensuring competitive procurement, limiting cost overruns and strengthening institutional oversight would help contain debt risks and protect fiscal stability.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A recent study by researchers from SOAS University of London, comparing the two countries, warns that similar policy…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":296260,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[138,219,111,139,69],"class_list":{"0":"post-296259","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-economy","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-economy","10":"tag-new-zealand","11":"tag-newzealand","12":"tag-nz"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/296259","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=296259"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/296259\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/296260"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=296259"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=296259"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=296259"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}