Commonwealth supports First South Asian Economic Summit

The Commonwealth Secretariat is collaborating with the Institute of Policy Studies and the Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Sri Lanka to organise the First South Asian Economic Summit.

The Summit will focus on the South Asian Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA), which came into operation in July 2006, with the objective of facilitating multi-stakeholder interactions by bringing together key policy-makers, renowned researchers and trade economists and business representatives.

During the event, taking place between 28 and 30 August 2008 in Colombo, Sri Lanka, the participants are expected to discuss ways and means to deepen and broaden economic integration not only in terms of trade in goods, but also by incorporating services and investment in the regional liberalisation agenda of the countries involved.

Dr Sheel Kant Sharma, Secretary-General of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation, Dr Hossain Zillur Rahman, Adviser for Commerce, Government of Bangladesh, and Dr Jairam Ramesh, Union Minister of State for Commerce, Government of India, are among the dignitaries to address the Summit.

In the Summit the Commonwealth Secretariat will be represented by Dr Indrajit Coomaraswamy, Director of Economic Affairs, who will speak at the inaugural ceremony and will chair a technical session on Services Trade in South Asia.

“We have been following the related developments that are taking place in South Asia by undertaking analytical research and dissemination workshops, and this Summit will certainly provide an important opportunity for informed exchanges at a broader level,” said Dr Coomaraswamy.

SAFTA member countries - Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka - are among the low-income developing countries that have experienced sustained economic growth backed by quite impressive trade performance.

Therefore, according to Dr Coomaraswamy, the most important issue for them is to devise a trade regime that will ensure their economic growth and trade with the rest of the world while advancing the intra-regional trade.

He said: “By abolishing non-tariff barriers, undertaking improved trade facilitation measures, and extending co-operation in the areas of services, investment, tourism, transit and transhipment, and energy trade, South Asian countries can benefit enormously.”

One key challenge that the Summit is to address is how to ensure that the gains from regional integration do not bypass the weaker economies such as Bangladesh, Bhutan and Nepal, which are among the least developed countries as defined by the United Nations.

Dr Mohammad Razzaque, an Economic Adviser with the Secretariat, will make a presentation on the issues for weaker economies in South Asia in one of the technical sessions of the Summit.

Along with the Commonwealth Secretariat, the Summit is being supported by Research and Information System for Developing Countries, South Asia Centre for Policy Studies, South Asia Watch on Trade, Economics & Environment, World Bank, UNDP, and Asian Development Bank.

Key Links:

• Economics and Trade
• Country Profile: Sri Lanka