The 18th Summit meeting of the Leaders of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) concluded today in the Nepalese capital of Kathmandu.
The Leaders gathered at the Summit Retreat this morning where informal consultations took place before meeting up again in the afternoon for the closing ceremony. During the ceremony, a new regional Framework Agreement on Energy Cooperation (Electricity) was signed by the Members of the Association. The Agreement is aimed at facilitating cross-border trade of electricity on voluntary basis; enables Buying and Selling Entities to negotiate the terms, conditions, payment security mechanism and tenure of electricity trade. It also requires sharing and updating technical data and information on the electricity sector and encourages the process of opening up of the electricity sector. On behalf of the Maldives, the Agreement was signed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs H E Dunya Maumoon.
The Summit Declaration was also adopted this afternoon. Themed on “Deeper Integration for Peace and Prosperity”, the Declaration focuses on enhanced trade liberalisation within the region especially under SAFTA, energy cooperation, recognizes the particular vulnerabilities of Small Island Developing States and also focuses on institutional reform of the Association. Importantly, the Declaration underscores the importance of the international community to conclude a legally binding outcome in the fight against climate change before the end of 2015. The Leaders also agreed to develop capacity of Member States to apply space technology for socio-economic development and the welfare of the peoples through experience sharing and technology transfer and in this context welcomed the offer of India to develop and launch a SAARC satellite.
The Summit was closed by the new Chairman of SAARC, the Right Honourable Sushil Koirala, Prime Minister of Nepal. The Prime Minister of Pakistan H E Mr. Mohamed Nawaz Sharif delivered the Vote of Thanks as the host of the next Summit.
SAARC Leaders Concludes Deal on Energy Cooperation
