The SAARC Secretariat observed the Staff Day on 16 January 2013 to mark the day of its establishment.

 

This is the first time that the Secretariat observed the Day upon initiation by the incumbent Secretary-General of SAARC, H. E. Mr. Ahmed Saleem.

 

 Addressing the officials of the Secretariat on the Staff Day, the Secretary-General said, “The main purpose of this initiative is to

honour the staff for their hard workand dedication and to create a conducive atmosphere in the Secretariat where everyone works 

 harder than before with unwavering commitment and devotion.”

 

On the same occasion, in pursuance of the decision of the Forty-second Session of the Programming Committee, the Secretary-General also declared Mr. Balkrishna Pariyar, Messenger, the best performer for the year 2012.

 

To mark the Day, the Secretariat organized a table tennis tournament participated in by the Secretary-General, its Directors and officials. Mr. Kumar Shrestha and Mr. Ratan Silwal won the final match against Mr. Tareque Muhammad and Mr. Madhusudan Lamichhane.

 

Likewise, in commemoration of the Day, a Staff Picnic will be held in Dhulikhel on Sunday, 20 January 2013 during which the best performer of the Secretariat and the winning team of the tournament will be awarded.

 

Established in 1987 in Kathmandu, the Secretariat coordinates and monitors the implementation of SAARC activities, services the meetings of the Association and initiates proposals for regional cooperation, including elaboration of sub-regional and regional projects and identification of sources of their funding.

 

The Secretariat comprises a Secretary-General, eight Directors and regionally and locally recruited officials from Member States, namely, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.