Bangladesh recorded a 20.76% increase in scientific research publications in 2025, surpassing India and Pakistan in growth rate, although it remains behind both countries in overall output.

According to the annual report, published by the online magazine Scientific Bangladesh, the country’s total research output in Scopus-indexed journals, conference proceedings and book series rose from 15,413 publications in 2024 to 18,613 in 2025.

Infographics: TBS

The data include scientific documents published up to 4 January this year.

During the same period, India recorded a 9.01% increase in publications, while Pakistan saw a growth of 6.80%.

In absolute numbers, however, India’s publications rose from 334,617 to 364,782, and Pakistan’s from 42,353 to 45,260.

Among South Asian countries, only the Maldives and Afghanistan posted higher growth rates than Bangladesh – 52.7% and 47.53% respectively – though their overall publication volumes remain comparatively small.

Reasons behind the gap

Explaining why Bangladesh continues to trail India and Pakistan in total output despite the higher growth rate, Jahangirnagar University Vice-Chancellor Professor Mohammad Kamrul Ahsan told TBS that structural and institutional limitations remain major barriers.

“Our research systems are not yet fully researcher-friendly or professionally supportive. Moreover, the lack of subscriptions to high-quality international journals prevents many researchers from accessing essential resources,” he said.

He said greater institutional access to major international journals could reduce financial and technological barriers.

Researchers also require dedicated time, improved facilities and expanded opportunities to increase output, he added.

Prof Kamrul also expressed concern over the quality of local academic journals.

“If journals are used merely as tools for promotion, their academic quality will never improve,” he said.

Making publication in reputable international journals a requirement for recruitment and promotion could enhance both the quality and quantity of research, he noted. 

“If education policies make publication in reputable international journals a requirement, both the quality and quantity of research will naturally increase,” he noted.

Strengthening local journals through strict quality control could also help them reach international standards.

Research performance in 2025

According to the report, the top three research areas in Bangladesh in 2025 were engineering, computer science and medicine. No patents were recorded during the year.

The University of Dhaka led in total output with 1,731 publications, although its publication rate per faculty member remained below one.

Researchers from the National University (70 publications) appeared in the rankings for the first time.

Daffodil International University (DIU) and Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology ranked second and third respectively in research output, followed by Bangladesh Agricultural University in fourth place. Jahangirnagar University ranked fifth.

Rajshahi University, BRAC University, North South University, Khulna University of Engineering and Technology, and American International University Bangladesh (AIUB) were also among the top ten.

M Firoz Mridha of AIUB, Ahmed Wasif Reza of East West University, and Muhammad Torequl Islam of Khulna University were identified as the three most productive researchers in 2025.

Bangladeshi researchers published in 11 languages, predominantly in English, with no publications recorded in Bengali.

Of the top 15 research funding agencies, nine were foreign organisations. Among domestic funders, the Ministry of Science and Technology ranked highest, followed by the Ministry of Education.

The report noted limited involvement of other ministries, particularly the Ministries of Industry and Agriculture, in research funding.

Call for greater policy focus

Monir Uddin Ahmed, editor of Scientific Bangladesh, said scientific advancement is essential for job creation and meeting the needs of a growing population.

“To achieve this, Bangladesh 2.0 must prioritise education and research, aiming to raise investment in these sectors to 5% of GDP by 2040. This would enable Bangladesh to transform from a science-lagging nation into a science-advanced country by 2050,” he said.

He added that without making research and innovation a key election issue, adequate investment would remain unlikely.

He urged voters to consider political parties’ commitments to research and innovation when reviewing election manifestos.