Dhaka [Bangladesh], March 21 (ANI): BIMSTEC leaders are set to adopt a declaration and BIMSTEC Vision 2030 at the upcoming Summit to be held in the first week of April in Bangkok, the organization's Secretary General said on Friday.

'The Summit, which is just 10 days away, will be an important Summit. It's the first in-person Summit after the Kathmandu Summit in 2018. The Summit in Colombo was virtual Summit. Apart from adopting a declaration in the Summit, the leaders are also going to adapt BIMSTEC vision 2030 that will pave the roadmap and road for future cooperation among the BIMSTEC member states', Indra Mani Pandey, Secretary General of BIMSTEC, said in an exclusive interview with ANI.

The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) brings together seven countries of South and Southeast Asia for multi-faceted cooperation.

'Our charter came into force last year in May. Now our leaders are going to adapt what we call rules of procedures for our organization. So that will be very important decisions by our leaders. Similarly, we had an eminent person group last year, and they have submitted their reports to the foreign ministers. Now our leaders are going to adapt that report. Here I would like to mention that we have already started implementing that report even before our leaders have adopted it', he said.

The Secretary-General said that there would be a signing ceremony for some memorandums of understanding between BIMSTEC and its partners.

'We are expecting a ceremony to sign the agreement on Maritime Transport Cooperation. There is also a plan for the virtual inauguration of BIMSTEC Energy Centre, which has already been set up and is going to be operational soon', Pandey said.

The BIMSTEC is an organization of seven South Asian and Southeast Asian nations, housing 1.73 billion people and having a combined gross domestic product of USD 5.2 trillion. The BIMSTEC member states - Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand - are among the countries dependent on the Bay of Bengal.

'The global economic challenges do impact all our member states, and our member states take steps to deal with those challenges. However, they believe that the region can help them in dealing with those challenges in their own way. BIMSTEC has a very comprehensive agenda. We have 15 sectors and sub-sectors for cooperation on our agenda. They cover most of the sustainable development goals', the Secretary-General said.

'If we are able to expand cooperation under our various agenda items, it will help our member states realize their sustainable development goals and directly and indirectly, it will enable to deal with the challenges that they face, that their economic challenges and social challenges', he said.

The Secretary General described India's role in BIMSTEC as very important to boost the regional cooperation.

'India, together with Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Thailand, was a founding member of BIMSTEC. It has continued to play an important role in shaping the agenda and the nature of cooperation within BIMSTEC and other member states. The way we have structured our cooperation, each member state has been given the responsibility to lead cooperation in one or more than one sector. For example, Bangladesh has been given the responsibility to lead regional cooperation in trade, investment, development and blue economy whereas India has the responsibility to lead cooperation in sectors like security, disaster management and energy', he said.

'Both disaster management and energy, India has taken the initiative, for example, of setting up the centres of excellence. There is a BIMSTEC Centre for weather and climate which assists our member states in climate and weather forecasts. BIMSTEC Energy Centre is being set up to promote collaboration in the Energy sector', Pandey said.

'We are also working towards inter-connection of our electricity grids, which will contribute to energy security and green transition of our member states. India, working together with other member states, has been very supportive of BIMSTEC. I would like to mention two more initiatives of India, In 2016 when India hosted BRICS Summit, it had invited BIMSTEC leaders for a retreat which gave a new momentum to regional cooperation,' he said.

'In 2022, Prime Minister Modi had announced a grant of one dollar million for BIMSTEC and it has helped us strengthening the institutional framework of BIMSTEC. So, India, as I said, together with other members, has been trying to strengthen BIMSTEC because it believes regional cooperation through BIMSTEC to be helpful for our member states', he said.

The Summit has given the opportunity for the leaders to hold bilateral meetings.

'The Secretariate is not directly or indirectly involved in the meetings which our leaders will have on a bilateral basis. So, we are not aware of what our leaders are planning to do on a bilateral basis with other leaders. However, the Summit gives an opportunity for leaders to have conversations and express their collective commitment to BIMSTEC. So we are hoping that all our leaders will be their political commitment strengthening BIMSTEC at the Summit and that we have been looking forward', he said.

'Strengthening intraregional trade, strengthening security cooperation, strengthening connectivity has been on the BIMSTEC agenda from the very beginning, and we have been able to make progress in all three sectors. In the connectivity sector, we have adopted a master plan for connectivity. There is agreement among the member states to take initiatives to complete the projects within their own territories in order to enhance connectivity with other member states', he said.

'In trade, we have already signed a framework agreement for FTA. We are also going to focus on promoting other areas of interaction, like business-to-business interaction and more meetings between our business leaders. We are looking at the completion of negotiations for free trade, trade in services, and investments. All these measures will help all the countries enhance intraregional trade', Pandey said.

'Naturally the trade between Bangladesh and India will also get a positive momentum by all these measures. Our effort has been to encourage all our member states to trade more with each other. So directly or indirectly, what we are trying to do through BIMSTEC will help our member states to enhance intraregional trade,' he said. (ANI)