WORLD> Asia-Pacific
|
WORLD> Asia-Pacific
|
|
15th SAARC Summit opens in Colombo
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-08-02 21:43 Singh said the aim of SAARC should be to create virtuous cycles of growth in the region, noting: "We can and must do more to give meaning to the theme of this year's summit." Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gillani also said in his address at the summit that South Asian leaders must recognize in all candidness that the gap between the promise of SAARC and the reality of its accomplishment remains wide despite some notable achievements. "We need concerted efforts to build on areas of convergence and minimize divergences and augment complementarities for the greater good of the people of this region," Gillani said. Gillani said leaders of the South Asian nations must follow a comprehensive approach and paid urgent attention to poverty alleviation, noting SAARC must address the food security on priority as the region has to took to the outside world for food security. He said the region should consider launching a Greater Asia Food Security Program together with other Asian countries outside the SAARC Food Bank. The theme of the 15th SAARC Summit was "Growth through Partnership" as Afghan President Hamid Karzai, Bhutan Prime Minister Jigmi Y. Thinley, Bangladeshi Chief Advisor Fakhruddin Ahmed, Maldivian President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, Nepali Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gillani convened with about 1,000 representatives of eight SAARC nations and seven observer countries tried to figure out a clear direction for the grouping. The highlights of the 15th SAARC Summit, which runs until Sunday, will be the signing of four significant regional agreements including the proposed Agreement on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters with the significant inclusion of a regional framework for cooperation in tackling terrorism, and the establishment of a SAARC Development Fund to provide financial assistance for economic, social and infrastructure development projects in the region. SAARC groups eight countries of South Asia, namely Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka with a population of about 1.5 billion. Representatives from China, the European Union, Iran, Japan, Mauritius, Republic of Korea and the United States also participated in the summit as observers. 
|
