South Asia will be the fastest-growing emerging market region this year according to a new report by the World Bank. Most of that is attributed to India's economic performance. Neighbouring countries have also recovered from the pandemic but poverty and unemployment are still major concerns.

Delhi

South Asia is expected to emerge as the fastest-growing region among emerging markets in 2024, based on a recent report from the World Bank. This optimistic forecast is largely due to the robust economic performance of India, which plays a significant role in the region's overall growth. Other countries in the neighborhood, too, have shown signs of recovery from the adverse impacts of the pandemic.

Despite the positive growth trends, South Asia is grappling with persistent issues of poverty and unemployment. These concerns remain significant challenges for the region, indicating that while economic growth is on an upward trajectory, comprehensive development that includes social welfare improvements is still needed.



World Bank predicts South Asia to be fastest growing in 2024

Strong growth fuelled by rapidly increasing investment and government spending drove the Indian economy to grow by more than 8 per cent in the final months of 2023. The World Bank says this helped South Asia's growth figures, which were announced in a report launched in Colombo on Tuesday. Outside India, however, growth in much of the region has slowed to pre-pandemic levels. If South Asia raised its trade to GDP ratio and to the emerging market and developing economy average, the bars would be the same, and if it raised its capital account openness to the emerging market and developing economy average, the probability of sparking sustained private investment acceleration could be about one-half higher. The report shows an average of 60 million people in South Asia have been affected by climate change every year for the past decade. But governments cannot afford to adapt. The numbers show South Asia performed best among emerging markets and developing economies, but the World Bank says regional growth is driven largely by India. Countries like Sri Lanka are still struggling with limited private investment and rising unemployment and poverty. A panel discussion after the release of the report highlighted some of the obstacles blocking growth. Coordination in government is extremely difficult. Now I as a businessman invest in renewable energy, you need over 16 permits. You have roughly about 43 labor laws that you have to cope with, 15 of which are in operation on a daily basis, most of which were drafted either before or around the time of independence. Countries have largely failed to create jobs for the working age population. This has contributed to a rise in poverty levels in recent years. Sri Lanka has more than one-fourth of its population living in poverty. Asked about the government's economic reform program, the World Bank admitted it had put a lot of burden on the Sri Lankan people, but stressed it was needed. From our side, yeah, we are concerned about reform fatigue, reform reversal. We think it's important, as I said, it's this bridge to recovery, is that the reforms are critical in those areas to sustain and maintain them. Governments across South Asia say they are trying to improve fiscal discipline and build resilient economies. But most people in the world's most populous region aren't convinced this will improve their lives. Minal Fernandes, Al Jazeera, Colombo.

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