KATHMANDU, MARCH 30

Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba stressed the need to breathe new life into BIMSTEC by pooling the strengths of resources of its member states.

Addressing virtually the Fifth Summit of Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) held in hybrid mode in and from Colombo, Sri Lanka, the prime minister stated that BIMSTEC must do its part to address the long term economic, social, and developmental consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic and ensure that the region builds back better.

He further stated that our race to resilience must start with a green, flexible, and inclusive recovery plan. This means action on vaccines, investment in health systems, and expansion of social protection schemes together with structural reforms and quality investment in physical and human capital, he said.

The prime minister also touched upon the challenges facing the region and outlined the steps BIMSTEC members states must take collectively on the sectors of cooperation such as trade, investment, energy, connectivity, climate change and people-to-people contacts, as per a media release issued here today by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA).

Underlining that bold climate action was needed before the climate crisis passed the point of no return, he called for making the current crisis a gateway to a greener, safer, and more sustainable Bay of Bengal region. The prime minister dubbed Buddhism as a strong connecting thread in the region and called for an early operationalisation of the Buddhist circuit connecting Lumbini, birthplace of Gautam Buddha.

The summit adopted the BIMSTEC Charter following a virtual signing ceremony. The prime minister signed the charter on behalf of Nepal.

The summit also endorsed three new instruments. Minister for Foreign Affairs Narayan Khadka, who participated in the summit in-person in Colombo, signed the 'BIMSTEC Convention on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters' and the 'Memorandum of Association on the Establishment of Technology Transfer Facility in Colombo' on behalf of the government of Nepal. Similarly, Joint Secretary and Head of Regional Organisation Division at the MoFA Ghanshyam Bhandari signed the 'Memorandum of Understanding on the Mutual Cooperation between Diplomatic Academies/Training Institutions of BIMSTEC Member States'.

The Nepali delegation led by the prime minister included Minister Khadka, Principal Personal Secretary to the Prime Minister Bhan Bahadur Deuba, Chief Secretary Shanker Das Bairagi, Foreign Secretary Bharat Raj Paudyal and senior officials from Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers and MoFA.

Leaders from all seven member states addressed the summit convened under the theme of 'BIMSTEC - Towards a Resilient Region, Prosperous Economies, Healthy Peoples'. The chairmanship of BIMSTEC, which was held by Sri Lanka for the last three-and-a-half years, has now been handed over to Thailand.

Meanwhile, BIMSTEC Track-2 Dialogue with the theme of 'Building Enabling Architecture for Peace, Prosperity and Partnership' is taking place in Colombo from March 31 to April 1 at the sidelines of the BIMSTEC Summit. It is being organised by the Pathfider Foundation and will be inaugurated by the Foreign Minister of Sri Lanka GL Peiris.

Secretary General of BIMS- TEC along with former ministers like Suresh Prabhu of India and think-tank heads from the region will be addressing the event.

From Nepal, Director of Centre for South Asian Studies (CSAS) Nishchal N Pandey will be speaking on 'Physical and Digital Connectivity in the Bay of Bengal Region', according to a press release issued today by the CSAS.

A version of this article appears in the print on March 31, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.