Take Decisive Steps
GIVING a run-down on how the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) has
progressed since Nepal took over the chairmanship of the seven-member combine early this
year, Prime Minister and current Chairman of the regional body Sher Bahadur Deuba sought
Wednesday to set the tone for the SAARC Council of Minister's meeting. Inaugurating the
gathering, he told the ministers and delegates that decisive steps had to be made a
forward movement in the area of economic cooperation. The 11th SAARC summit in Kathmandu
had agreed to a long-term vision of South Asian Economic Union in order to fulfil the
shared aspirations of the peoples in the region for a more prosperous South Asia through
the acceleration of negotiations on the fourth round of SAPTA and the conclusion of the
SAFTA treaty framework by the end of this year. Those observing the SAARC movement cannot
but fail to notice that despite the indispensability of the South Asian nations coming
together economically in this increasingly globalised world, the movement forward in this
respect is not exactly speedy. Thus the prime minister's urging to the meeting must be
seen as Nepal's fervent desire to see the South Asian countries joining hands in an
economic alliance so that the region can grow prosperous together. Indeed, without
economic benefits accuring from the SAARC vehicle to the teeming tens of millions of South
Asians, most of who live in penury, the objectives and principles of the SAARC remain far
from fulfilled. We should concentrate on doable programmes, the prime minister declared,
and on their effective implementation so that the results become tangible and meaningful.
Implementing SAARC economic programmes must be considered
doable. With a good SAFTA treaty, all countries in the region could benefit from trading
with each other. But we need to move faster on creating SAFTA and the seven countries must
be equally enthusiastic about it and cooperate closely to make it a reality. South Asian
Economic Union must not remain only thing far-off in the future. When countries in other
regions could come together in such a union, there is no reason why the seven countries,
where one-fifth of the humanity resides, should not be able to construct it. Guided as he
must have been by these sentiments that Prime Minister Deuba chose to consider the
promotion of free trade area as one of the three core areas-the other two being
eradication of poverty and social upliftment-where SAARC had to focus on, if it is to be
faithful to its principles and objectives. Nepal hopes the seven countries cooperate
strongly on this vital area which has the potentials of directly benefiting the South
Asian masses.
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