SAARC-SOUTH ASIAN ASSOCIATION FOR REGIONAL CO-OPERATION

• Established 1985,
• Founder – Then President of Bangladesh …Jiya – Ur- Rehman
• Secretariat – Kathmandu ,
• Nature- An  intergovernmental organization .

Objective:

To Promote Regional co-operation, gradually deduction & abolition of duties among member nation.

• To promote unified currency.
• To promote regional Brotherhood.

Members :-

Initially were – 7, now became 8 after inclusion of Afghanistan, India, Srilanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, Bhutan, Afghanistan, Maldives.

• Its head of states meet.. annually one after another in member nation.
• Wherever it occurs that state became its head.

Following nations/ institutions are its observers -China, Japan, U.S.A., Mauritius.

SAFTA –

-SAFTA required the developing countries in South Asia (India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka) to bring their duties down to 20 percent ending in 2007.

 In the final five-year phase ending in 2012, the 20 percent duty was reduced to zero% in a series of annual cuts.

-The least developed countries in South Asia (Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and the Maldives) had an additional three years to reduce tariffs to zero.

-India and Pakistan ratified the treaty in 2009, whereas Afghanistan as the 8th member state of the SAARC ratified the SAFTA protocol on 4 May 2011.

Trade Liberalisation Programme

-Member countries must follow the following tariff reduction schedule.

 There should be a fall to

-20% tariff from the existing tariff by the non-Least Developing Countries and

-30% reduction from the existing tariff by the Least Developing Countries.

 But trade liberalisation scheme is not to be applied for the sensitive list because this list is to be negotiated among the contracting countries and then to be traded.

 Sensitive list will involve common agreement among the contracting countries favouring the least developed contracting countries.

SACU-South Asian Currency Union

Sensitive list

-A sensitive list is a list with every country which does not include tariff concession.

9^th  summit - Islamabad on 15 TO 16 November 2016

Pakistan scheduled to host the 19th summit of SAARC.

India including Afghanistan, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Maldives refused to attend due to 2016 Uri attack. Pakistan postponed the SAARC summit and announced that new dates would be released soon.

Specialized Bodies-

SAARC Member States have created the following Specialized Bodies .

The heads of these Bodies act as Member Secretary to the Governing Board which reports to the Programming Committee of SAARC.

Regional centres-                                                                                   

SAARC Member States have created the following Regional centres-

Criticism

SAARC is constantly passing through a phase of great unsuccess & failure.

Currently more than 21% of world’s population live in SAARC but its contribution in..world trade is  3-4%.

World’s maximum number of B.P.L. live in SAARC. Here the human development index is very low.

There is great Gender – inequality in this area.

Hit badly by terrorism in this areas. Interestingly it is one of the origins of terrorism because the roots of terrorism spreads through Pakistan & Afghanistan.

Most of its deliberations, discussions declarations are mere verbal duals they are for namesake only.   Its execution rate is very poor e.g. SAFTA – South Asian Free Trade Area.   It could not be implemented.

The SAARC’s declaration at SACU is as good as a …dead born child.

The failure of SAARC leads to ..foundation of BIMSTEC & India eager to get membership of ASEAN.

  India can go ahead with a plan of  ‘SAARC minus Pakistan’ 

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