BIMSTEC cultural industries commission and cultural industries observatory will be established in Bhutan. A memorandum of understanding to this effect has been finalized at the 2nd BIMSTEC. The summit was held in New Delhi, India on Thursday, November 13.

The summit also finalized the establishment of the BIMSTEC Energy, Weather and Climate Centres in India. BIMSTEC leaders have also finalized the establishment of the BIMSTEC Convention on Combating International Terrorism and Transnational Organized Crime and Illicit Drug Trafficking.

The memorandums of understandings are expected to be signed later.

Proposals to establish the BIMSTEC Tourism Centre in Nepal, the BIMSTEC Poverty Alleviation Centre in Bangladesh and BIMSTEC Technology Exchange Facility in Sri Lanka were discussed during the summit.

The summit also saw discussions on the proposal to set up a Food Security Reserve among BIMSTEC Member States to help enhance food security in the region.

It saw discussions on the negotiations to finalize the Agreement on Trade in Goods under the BIMSTEC free trade area. The summit directed the BIMSTEC Senior Economic Ministers or the officials meeting to resolve the outstanding issues.

The summit decided to include Climate Change as another priority area of cooperation. There are currently 13 priority areas of cooperation.

Established in 1997, BIMSTEC serves as a bridge for the two geographically contiguous sub-regions of South and South East Asia. It was established to create an enabling environment for rapid economic development, to accelerate social progress and promote collaboration in agreed areas of cooperation. Bhutan became a BIMSTEC member in 2004.

The Bhutanese delegation to the summit was led by the Prime Minister Loynchhen Jigmi Y. Thinley.

On the sidelines of the summit the Prime Minister Lyonchhen Jigmi Y. Thinley held a bilateral meeting with the Prime Minister of India Dr. Manmohan Singh. The leaders of the member states also called on the President of India Pratibha Patil.

Source: BBS