New Delhi: India is firming up plans for the first-ever Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) Business Summit to be held next month. Trade ministers from the seven BIMSTEC member countries, including junta-ruled Myanmar, are likely to attend the summit, according to people familiar with the matter.
Approximately a hundred delegates will be invited to the summit, including government officials, entrepreneurs, think tanks and businesses.
Headquartered in Dhaka, BIMSTEC is an inter-regional grouping that seeks to foster regional and economic cooperation among nations in the Bay of Bengal region. Member states include India, Thailand, Myanmar, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Bhutan.
This grouping is home to over 20 percent of the world’s population with a combined GDP of over $5 trillion.
Owing to issues within the South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (SAARC) — particularly when its 2016 summit slated to be held in Pakistan was suspended after member countries declined to participate — BIMSTEC has gradually emerged as the “preferred platform” for regional cooperation in South Asia. The India-Pakistan rivalry over the last five years has affected the functioning of SAARC.
The development comes ahead of the 6th BIMSTEC Summit, which will likely be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other leaders, and will take place in Bangkok in September. The business summit seeks to build on “good momentum” from the recently concluded foreign minister and security chief-level meetings.
On 26 July, the BIMSTEC security chiefs meet was held in Myanmar’s capital city Naypyitaw and was attended by National Security Advisor Ajit Doval. On 11 July, the foreign ministers’ retreat was held in New Delhi and hosted by External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar. Unlike an official meeting, a “retreat” is less formal and no outcome document is required. This retreat was the second of its kind held by BIMSTEC foreign ministers.
As reported by ThePrint, New Delhi will host the business summit from 6-8 August and Jaishankar is expected to address the event. This is taking place even though Thailand holds the BIMSTEC presidency.
Thailand and Myanmar are seen as important “bridges” to help India connect to Southeast Asia, according to government sources, adding a strategic element in engaging these two countries in regional groupings like BIMSTEC.
That said, security issues in Myanmar following the 2021 coup have negatively impacted some of New Delhi’s development projects in the region such as the India-Myanmar-Thailand highway.
Last July, Jaishankar travelled to Bangkok for the 12th meeting of the Mekong Ganga Cooperation (MGC) initiative where he urged the speedy completion of the highway project.
BIMSTEC was initially formed as an economic connectivity initiative, but issues like cooperation on counter-terrorism are being increasingly discussed. India leads the vertical on Counter-Terrorism and Transnational Crime, Disaster Management and Energy in the grouping.
Still, the grouping’s stagnation on certain fronts remains a hurdle. At the recently foreign ministers’ retreat in Delhi, Jaishankar called for better cooperation among member states. “Our message should be clear — that we are all determined to infuse new energies, new resources and a new commitment into cooperation among the Bay of Bengal nations,” he said.
Also Read: Myanmar deputy PM leads delegation to India for BIMSTEC meet, ‘will strengthen regional cooperation’
FTA talks, connecting chambers of commerce
The business summit will seek broader engagement on the BIMSTEC free trade agreement (FTA), which has seen slow progress since it was signed in early 2004.
An FTA would cover goods, services, investment and economic cooperation among the member countries. Though there have been about twenty rounds of talks held by the Trade Negotiating Committee (TNC), progress has been slow.
The business summit will seek to coordinate and connect chambers of commerce across the seven BIMSTEC member countries and streamline customs processes and trading practices, among other goals. An initiative for women entrepreneurs is also in the works, sources said, adding, panels on energy security, connectivity projects, and digital cooperation are also being organised.
ThePrint also reported that the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) is exploring the possibility of setting up three BIMSTEC Centres of Excellence in the areas of agriculture, marine research and maritime transport.
(Edited by Sanya Mathur)
Inclusion of security agendas in a grouping meant for economic pursuits is further SAARCification of BIMSTEC. India seems to be pushing this on its own & must be careful with bringing partner countries on the same page.