Daily Times

The 18th South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Summit concluded in Kathmandu on November 27, 2014. The summit was heading for another failure as the Prime Ministers (PMs) of Pakistan and India did not greet each other, leave alone acknowledge one another’s presence, but the timely intervention of other members, especially the PM of the host country, Nepal (who was determined to do his utmost to make the summit a success), facilitated bringing the PMs of both India and Pakistan together. In fact, it is to the credit of both PM Modi and PM Sharif, who set aside their differences by showing true statesmanship, that the summit was resuscitated, preventing another failure at SAARC.

It has been seen that very little has been achieved in past summits, except for promoting regional cooperation. In this summit, the real face-saver was the signing of a framework agreement on cooperation in the power sector. This agreement will enable cooperation in the power sector among the eight member countries and facilitate integrated operation of the regional power grid. Although all SAARC countries were eagerly looking forward to finalising the much-awaited motor vehicle and railway pacts for greater people-to-people contact and movement of goods, Pakistan put a spoke in the wheel on the pretext of their internal processes not being completed and sought time to complete them.

SAARC was established in 1980, with its secretarial office in Kathmandu, Nepal, based on the membership of India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Nepal. Afghanistan was included in 2007 as a member. The objective of establishing SAARC was to promote regional cooperation between member countries, like the European Union and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). The guiding principles of SAARC are: 1. Respect the principles of sovereign equality, territorial integrity, political independence, non-interference in internal affairs of other states and mutual benefit. 2. It is no substitute for bilateral and multilateral cooperation but complements them. 3. Its obligation shall not be inconsistent with bilateral and multilateral obligation; the charter excluded bilateral and contentious issues from its deliberations.

The charter also aimed to promote the quality of life and economic growth in the region, strengthen collective self-reliance, encourage active collaboration in economic, technical and scientific fields and increase people-to-people contact and sharing of information among SAARC members. The first summit was held in Dhaka in 1985.

SAARC concerns itself with the problems of self-reliance, eradication of poverty, illiteracy, malnutrition and disease in the area. Indeed, in none of the areas has the impact of SAARC been visible. While some useful agreements have been signed during previous SAARC summits, their implementation has left much to be desired. The trade agreement, South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA), is a case in point.

Why has SAARC not been successful in forging better and more meaningful relations with one another? Unlike the European Union, or ASEAN, members of SAARC are not equal partners because of the unequal size of their economies. Political tensions between India and Pakistan are another reason for the organisation not being successful. The third reason is that member countries look at trade agreements with a myopic outlook and narrow national interests. Pakistan has still not granted India the Most Favoured Nation (MFN) status due to domestic compulsions. Intra-regional trade in goods in the SAARC region remains around five percent and, in services, barely 0.2 percent against 26 percent in ASEAN. The fourth reason could be attributed to lack of connectivity between different SAARC countries. India’s trade with Afghanistan is hampered because of the prevailing tensions between India and Pakistan. Similarly, Pakistan’s trade with Bangladesh and Nepal depends on its good relations with India. The lack of security and terrorist threats in most SAARC countries are more hindrances.

If the above concerns are to be surmounted, India should play a pivotal role by removing the perceived mistrust and sense of insecurity among the member nations. First and foremost, it needs to focus on improving bilateral ties with Pakistan for better cooperation and trade between the two countries, which can bring prosperity to the people on both sides of the divide. Pakistan, on the other hand, should grant MNF status to India and improve road and rail connectivity between India, Pakistan and Afghanistan for the movement of goods between these three countries. Both India and Pakistan can play a significant role in combating terrorism. They can also play a pivotal role in improving the economies of smaller countries like the Maldives, Bhutan and Nepal by increasing imports from these countries, by investing in their infrastructural facilities and improving trade between all SAARC countries. The cooperation between members will give a fillip to SAARC to help it realise its objective of giving every individual the “opportunity to live in dignity and to realise their full potential”. SAARC can also play a pivotal role in encouraging collaboration in the fields of economics, culture, technology and science. However, all this is possible only when India and Pakistan improve their bilateral relations, a sine qua non for the success of SAARC.

The writer is an independent journalist based in Vadodara, India. His contributions have appeared in both Indian and international newspapers