H.E. the Secretary General Ambassador Md. Golam Sarwar received at his office today the Director for the UNESCO Regional Office in New Delhi Mr Tim Curtis and UNESCO Representative in Nepal Mr. Michael Croft. 

The Sixth SAARC-ADB Special Meeting on Regional Economic Integration Study (Ph-II) was held in Kathmandu on 24-25 October 2024. The theme of the meeting was ‘Cross Border Trade in South Asia: Prospects and Challenges’.  

The Meeting was attended by delegations from the SAARC Member States. Representatives of the Commerce, Finance and Foreign Ministries of the SAARC Member States gathered to discuss the implementation status of seven prioritized recommendations of the Regional Economic Integration Study (Phase-II) conducted by ADB. The Sixth SAARC-ADB Special Meeting on Regional Economic Integration was held with the financial and technical assistance of ADB.

The delegates discussed actions taken at the national level for implementation of the seven recommendations of the Study, namely, implementation of SAARC Agreement on Trade in Services (SATIS); Reduction/Removal of Non-Tariff Barriers (NTBs) and Para-Tariff Barriers (PTBs); Investment Cooperation; Reduction of products in the Sensitive Lists; Trade Facilitation Measures; Energy Cooperation and Improvement in Connectivity (rail, road, air, maritime) among the Member States.  

The delegates also deliberated on different aspects of Cross Border Trade in South Asia, its prospects and challenges.

SAARC Secretariat

Kathmandu, Nepal

25 October 2024

The Governing Board (GB) of the SAARC Cultural Centre held its Fourteenth Meeting at the Cinnamon Grand, Colombo, Sri Lanka, from 22 to 23 October 2024. Representatives from the esteemed Governments of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh and the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka attended in person, while representatives from the Royal Government of Bhutan, the Republic of India, the Republic of Maldives, Nepal, and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan participated virtually.

Representing His Excellency, the Secretary General of SAARC, Director Irosha Cooray attended the meeting. The session was chaired by Mr. Md Mizanur, Joint Secretary at the Ministry of Culture, Bangladesh.

During the meeting, the implementation of the Thirteenth Governing Board’s directives was thoroughly assessed, ensuring that the Centre’s activities were aligned with the objectives set in the previous year. Through comprehensive discussions, the Governing Board finalized the anticipated programs and budget for the upcoming year, focusing on enhancing the Centre’s role in promoting cultural exchange and cooperation among SAARC member states. Additionally, all administrative and financial matters related to the Centre, including the audit report, were carefully reviewed to ensure transparency and accountability in the Centre’s operations. The two days of productive deliberations concluded successfully, resulting in several constructive recommendations, which are set to be presented at the upcoming Programming Committee meeting in Kathmandu for further consideration and approval. These recommendations aim to strengthen the Centre’s initiatives and ensure the effective implementation of its programs in the year ahead.

SAARC Secretariat
23 October 2024

SAARC Member States Deliberate on SDGs and Poverty Alleviation Plan of Action

A Consultative Workshop was held in Kathmandu on 21-22 October 2024 on Contextualizing Sustainable Development Goals in the SAARC Region and Revisiting the 2004 SAARC Plan of Action on Poverty Alleviation in light of the 2030 Development Agenda. The Workshop was hosted by the Government of Nepal; and financial and technical assistance was provided by the Asian Development Bank.

The Workshop was attended by delegations from SAARC Member States comprising senior officials of the Ministries/ Agencies responsible for SDGs and Poverty Alleviation as well as Foreign Ministries.

Speaking at the opening session of the Workshop as Chief Guest, Honorable Vice Chairman of the National Planning Commission of Nepal Prof. Dr. Shiva Raj Adhikari stated that given the size of the SAARC Region’s population and its development challenges, success of SDGs globally depends largely on the progress in the countries of the Region. Sharing about Nepal’s experience with the SDGs, the Vice Chairman highlighted that although certain areas have witnessed remarkable progress, there remains a concerning proportion of targets that are either progressing too slowly or even regressing. He emphasized on the need of mobilization of larger financing sources in productive areas, and improving efficiency of investment.

Addressing the opening session of the Consultative Workshop, Mr. Dongxiang Li, Lead Regional Cooperation Specialist, Regional Cooperation and Integration Unit, South Asia Department of Asian Development Bank stated that as SAARC’s long-term development partner, ADB would like to continue the partnership to further promote regional cooperation and integration in the SAARC region.

Delegations of SAARC Member States made their respective country presentations covering the status of implementation of SDGs, identification of common priority SDGs for the Region, contextualization of global indicators with respect to the local circumstances, monitoring the attainment of the 2030 Agenda in the SAARC region, and building partnerships to achieve the 2030 Agenda as well as review of the 2004 SAARC Plan of Action on Poverty Alleviation. In their country presentations, Member States highlighted the need of Accelerating implementation of SDGs; Ensuring greater availability of data in standardized format to monitor progress; Creating economic opportunities for people; Boosting investment in research and development, and innovation and technology; Addressing financing issues and seeking external funding; Investing in human capital development particularly in health and education; Enhancing intra-regional trade, investment and technology transfer; and Promoting cooperation in food security, among other measures.

ADB Consultant on SDGs and SAARC Plan of Action on Poverty Alleviation Dr. Posh Raj Pandey presented the Background Study, which provided a basis for deliberations.

Director (Information and Poverty Alleviation) at SAARC Secretariat Mr. Hari Odari opened the Workshop as Representative of the SAARC Secretary General.

Member Secretary of the National Planning Commission of Nepal Mr. Madhu Kumar Marisini addressed the closing session of the Workshop, which concluded by adopting a Report.

The Programme was chaired by Joint Secretary at the National Planning Commission of Nepal Mr Khomraj Koirala.   

SAARC Secretariat,

Kathmandu

22 October 2024