On arrival, comments by the Hon'ble Foreign Minister of Bangladesh
on 9th BIMSTEC Ministerial Meeting
Dhaka; 10 August 2006

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Good morning!

I would like to brief you on the outcome of the 9th BIMSTEC Ministerial Meeting which concluded in New Delhi yesterday (09 August).

As I told you before leaving Dhaka, BIMSTEC is the youngest of the organizations conceived to promote cooperation in our region. It was launched in 1997. Soon we shall be completing the first decade of its activities. Our Leaders are also scheduled to meet in New Delhi for the 2nd BIMSTEC Summit next year. As a result, this meeting held particular significance.

This meeting also marked the handover of Chairmanship of BIMSTEC from Bangladesh to India. As the outgoing Chair, in my statement I emphasized on the need for a BIMSTEC Charter, a strategic roadmap and a Permanent Secretariat, which I believe would structure the activities of BIMSTEC for the common benefit of the peoples of the region.

Now, briefly on the outcome of our Meeting.

First, on trade and investment, the Ministers decided that BIMSTEC FTA negotiations should end early. I emphasized that all parties should show flexibility in the negotiations so that the region may see the growth of equitable trade.

Second, expanding economic cooperation necessitated discussion on institutional issues during the Ministerial Meeting in Dhaka last December. Following that, discussion on a Permanent Secretariat has begun. Our proposal of a Charter would actually benefit this process. The Meeting decided that the experts would meet again to look at all the relevant issues.

Third, I highlighted the need for involvement of civil society in BIMSTEC. Since BIMSTEC has made some progress in various sectors, defined basic rules of engagement and initiated specific activities, we believe BIMSTEC should now consider how best we could utilize the strength of the civil society.

Forth, on public health, a priority sector that was introduced at the Dhaka Ministerial of BIMSTEC, we underscored the need for enhanced cooperation in combating infectious diseases that have cross border ramifications.

Fifth, on counter-terrorism, we agreed to redouble our efforts to combat this menace as many of the regional countries have been victims of such heinous acts.

We also discussed energy cooperation, cooperation in science and technology, environment and disaster management as well as tourism and people to people contact.

Finally, let me mention three major BIMSTEC events that we shall be hosting in Bangladesh. These are

• Second Ministerial Meeting on Culture and the BIMSTEC Cultural Festival (April 2007)
• First Ministerial Meeting on Poverty Alleviation in 2007.
• Trade/Economic Ministers Meeting preceded by the Senior Trade/ Economic Officials Meeting within the next few months.