Saarc: In global crisis, South Asia is on its own, says PM

Underlining a need for trust and a reduction in trade barriers, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said that no Saarc member can prosper in isolation. He was speaking at the 17th South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc) Summit, held at the Equatorial Convention Center in Addu, Maldives. Singh said the Summit is being held at a time when the world is passing through an economic crisis, with its epicentre in the eurozone.[caption id=“attachment_128486” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“Prime Minister Manmohan Singh inspecting the guard of honour at the ceremonial reception, on his arrival at Gan International Airport, to attend the 17th Saarc Summit, in Maldives on 9 November 2011.Image courtesy PIB”]  [/caption] “Our summit takes place at a time when the global economy is under acute stress. This has imposed a fresh and entirely uncalled for burden on our development efforts. We hope that the leaders of the major economies, particularly those in the eurozone, will show the wisdom and will that are required to revive the global economy,” the prime minister said, in what was a direct warning that there can be no quick end to this economic crisis. “We should seek imaginative ways to create new avenues and sources of growth and investment in South Asia, and this is indeed an imperative necessity. I believe, if we can create favourable conditions for development at home, there is no reason why our investors should seek greener pastures elsewhere. The complete normalisation of trade relations in Saarc will create huge opportunities for mutually beneficial trade within South Asia,” he said. “There are promising signs that South Asia is increasingly getting plugged into the growth dynamic of Asia. Despite all the difficulties, we have been able to maintain a respectable growth rate in the last few years,” Singh said. The prime minister said there should be major trade liberalisation in the region. “… in a major trade liberalization effort, the government of India has issued a notification to reduce the Sensitive List for the Least Developed Countries under the South Asian Free Trade Area Agreement from 480 tariff lines to just 25 tariff lines. Zero basic customs duty access will be given to all items removed with immediate effect,” he said. “I recognize that non-tariff barriers are an area of concern. India is committed to the idea of free and balanced growth of trade in South Asia. Competition begins at home. Our industries have to learn to compete if our economies are to have a future in this globalised world that we live in,” Singh said pointing out the challenges in the area of trade. “In our Summit in Dhaka in 2005, I had suggested a reciprocal initiative to provide unrestricted access to airlines from Saarc states to our four metropolitan cities, and to 18 other destinations in India. Connectivity has partially improved since then. But we must take this further,” the prime minister said while mentioning about improving air connectivity in the region. “We should aim to conclude a regional air services agreement, for which India would be happy to host a meeting of officials next year,” he said. Talking about other menas of transport, Singh said, “We have been talking of a Regional Railway Agreement and a Motor Vehicle Agreement for a long time. Let us agree to conclude these agreements as a matter of priority. India, Maldives and Sri Lanka are in the process of developing regional ferry services.” The prime minister also focussed on boosting tourism in the region. “We will take the initiative to establish a travelling exhibition on the ancient history of South Asia. This could comprise a hundred archeologically-significant pieces per country to be selected by member states. The exhibition can be hosted in each of our national museums in turn for a period of three months,” he said. Singh also called for easing of postal connectivity among the member nations. “Post-graduate courses in the South Asian University have started in July 2010. India will increase the number of Saarc Silver Jubilee Scholarships for the South Asian University from 50 to 100. Seventy-five of these 100 scholarships will be at the Masters level and 25 at the doctoral level,” the prime minister said. He also called upon the need to bring down call rates and develop a robust telecom connectivity in the region. Continue on the next page The prime minsiter said with improved “telecommunication linkages”, call rates, telecommunication tariffs and interconnection termination charges would come down. “India will be ready to facilitate the development of a regional telecommunications infrastructure to improve the quality of connectivity for our economies,” he said. “We should encourage greater broadcasting, television and film exchanges among our countries. It is time that we overcome the information deficit among the Saarc countries. We should encourage our people to know more about each other,” Singh said. Mentioning climate change in his 15-minute-long address, the prime minister said the India Endowment for Climate Change will introduce 10 scholarships per year for forestry courses. “We will provide a total of ten scholarships per year to Saarc member states for post-graduate and doctoral studies in forestry courses at the Forestry Research Institute of India, Dehradun,” he said. He announced that India has increased the number of scholarships for students from member nations from 50 to 100 at the South Asian University in New Delhi. “As someone who has had the privilege of attending the last four summits of Saarc, I can see the impressive progress we have made as an organisation in recent years. The momentum and scope of our cooperation have undoubtedly increased,” Singh said in his inaugural remarks. “In my discussions with the leaders of South Asia, I sense today a collective commitment and desire to give greater meaning and content to Saarc. Admittedly, there is a lot to be done but the political will is there,” he said. “The destiny of South Asia lies in our own hands. Saarc provides a unique platform for us to put aside our differences and work towards a higher calling. We have a long way to go, but I am confident that we can realise our true potential through sustained effort,” Singh said. “I reaffirm that India will do whatever is within our capabilities to make Saarc an effective instrument to deliver on our vision of common peace, shared prosperity and cooperation in South Asia,” the prime minister said.