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Press Release
Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh’s Statement at the Inaugural Session
of the 15th SAARC Summit
(August 2,
2008)
Your
Excellency President Mahinda Rajapaksa,
Excellencies, Heads of State and Governments,
Secretary General of SAARC,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I wish to begin by congratulating His Excellency President Mahinda
Rajapaksa for his election as Chairperson of SAARC. I also convey my
deep appreciation to the Government and people of Sri Lanka for the
excellent arrangements made for the 15th Summit, and for the warm and
generous hospitality that has been extended to all of us.
I also wish to extend a very warm welcome to our newest Observer,
Mauritius, a country with whom South Asia shares enduring historical and
cultural ties.
South Asia has travelled a long distance in the twenty three years since
SAARC was established. The winds of democracy and political change have
swept across our region. Our people’s aspirations, particularly of our
youth, for a better life and for greater empowerment, are rising. With
globalisation, our economies are ever more inter-connected with our
neighbours and with the world.
It is however a fact that South Asia has not moved as fast as we all
would have wished. We have only to see the rapid integration within
ASEAN and its emergence as an important economic bloc in Asia to
understand the opportunities that beckon.
The success
and prosperity of each one of us provides opportunities to the others to
promote their own success and prosperity. This mutuality of interests is
the central driving force of regional cooperation everywhere.
Our aim should be to create virtuous cycles of growth in our region. A
prosperous South Asia will also be a peaceful and stable South Asia.
Realising this vision requires a change in our mindsets, and a new
paradigm of thinking. We can and must do more to give meaning to the
theme of this year’s Summit: “Growth through Partnership”.
Terrorism continues to rear its ugly head in our region. It remains the
single biggest threat to our stability. We cannot afford to lose the
battle against the ideologies of hatred, fanaticism and against all
those who seek to destroy our social fabric.
Terrorists and extremists know no borders. The recent attack on the
Indian Embassy in Kabul and the serial blasts in Bangalore and Ahmedabad
are gruesome reminders of the barbarity that still finds a place here in
South Asia. We must act jointly and with determination to fight this
scourge. We must defend the values of pluralism, peaceful coexistence
and the rule of law.
South Asia clearly has the resources and the skills needed to meet our
development challenges. I am happy to say that India has experienced
vigorous growth at an average of 8.8% per year for the past four years.
India is now an open economy welcoming investment from everywhere. The
other countries in our region have also done well. Today, Asia has
become the engine of growth of the world economy and South Asia is a
part of this resurgence.
This growth
must have a multiplier effect in the region. We have rich and varied
experience in development, which we must pool together to create a model
of inclusive and sustainable regional development. The SAARC Development
Fund has made a promising start with the launching of two maternal and
child healthcare projects. The development of SAARC Model Villages in
each of our countries within the last year is an equally encouraging
development.
Economic cooperation, connectivity and integration will be the
cornerstone of SAARC in the years ahead. We have already agreed to move
towards a South Asian Customs Union and a South Asian Economic Union in
a planned and phased manner.
India has granted zero duty access to our markets to LDC members from
January 1, 2008, one year ahead of the target and also pruned our
sensitive list for these countries. India’s FTA with Sri Lanka is
working satisfactorily bringing benefits to both our economies.
We will go ahead with these initiatives at a pace we are all comfortable
with.
All the leaders have emphasized the importance of physical connectivity.
On its part, India has upgraded its railway connection to broad gauge at
the Raxaul-Birgunj and Jogbani-Biratnagar borders, the Dhaka-Kolkata
rail service has begun, and work is underway to upgrade infrastructure
along our borders with other neighbours. India looks forward to the
finalization of the draft Agreements on Motor Vehicles and Railways.
I have always
believed that the people of South Asia know much more about countries of
the West than they do about themselves. The fraternity that exists among
our students and professionals outside the region must be re-created in
South Asia. The overwhelming response generated by the first SAARC
Cultural Festival and the first SAARC Youth Camp reflects the latent
desire for such exchanges.
We are excited about the establishment of the South Asian University.
The land for the University in New Delhi has been acquired and a Project
Office has been set up. When the University becomes operational in 2010,
it will cater to 5000 students, and will create a pool of world-class
scientists, technologists and thinkers. When they go out into the world,
they will represent not just their respective countries but all of South
Asia.
To be a dynamic and responsive body, SAARC must identify and address new
challenges as they emerge. The unprecedented increase in oil and food
prices risks jeopardizing our developmental gains.
SAARC must make its voice heard in the councils of the world to ensure
that there is an effective global response that protects the interests
of oil consuming countries. We should also pool our resources to tap
renewable sources such as solar energy, hydropower and wind energy, all
of which South Asia has in abundance.
The
establishment of the SAARC Food Bank in 2007 was an extremely forward
looking decision. In the context of the global food crisis today, this
decision stands out as an example of our foresight and our ability to
help ourselves. We should now move forward to an early ratification of
the Intergovernmental Agreement by all the Member States.
We in India are acutely conscious that we need a Second Green
Revolution. The countries of South Asia need to work towards a
collective response that leads to a quantum leap in agricultural
productivity, foodgrain output and farm incomes so that the spectre of
food shortages vanishes from our region.
India will actively work with Member States to realise the several
proposals that have been made, including greater exchange of knowledge
and experience on breeding livestock, improvement in yields of protein
rich pulses and in adoption of modern post-harvest technologies.
We are inheritors and trustees of one of the most vulnerable eco-systems
in the world. It is most encouraging that our Ministers have finalised a
SAARC Action Plan on Climate Change, which recognizes that rapid
development provides the best form of adaptation.
India has
recently launched a National Action Plan on Climate Change, and we will
be more than willing to share experiences. There are a number of areas
in the Plan where we need to cooperate with SAARC member countries such
as in our mission on sustaining the Himalayan ecosystem, in our plans
for protection of coastal areas, disaster management strategies and
programmes, early warning systems and research on climate modeling.
SAARC already has projects on water harvesting and afforestation.
I am confident that under the able leadership of Sri Lanka, we will
continue to move these initiatives forward. In recent years we have
shifted our focus from declarations to action and implementation, and
this has begun to show results. As we consolidate, prioritize and
rationalize our activities, we will bring closer to the doorsteps of our
people the benefits of SAARC.
India stands ready to play her part in the evolution of a stable,
vibrant, and prosperous South Asia. I am optimistic about our future,
and am confident that the best is yet to come.
Thank you. |
