Saarc CCI vows to serve the region

The SAARC Chamber of Commerce and Industry, as an apex body in the region, turned 25 years and renewed its solemn pledge to continue for greater economic integration by fully exploiting all indigenous natural resources for the progress, prosperity, development and welfare of the people mainly aimed at doing away with abject poverty in South Asia.
President SAARC CCI Suraj Vaidya expressed these views while talking to SAARC Vice President Iftikhar Ali Malik from Nepal on telephone Wednesday on the occasion of Chamber's silver jubilee. He said that since its inception, the SAARC Chamber has facilitated regional cooperation in various areas for the welfare of people of South Asia. The SAARC should be more active to address major challenges the region faces, job creation for the youth of South Asia - our region's biggest asset - and alleviation of poverty, he added.
"The SAARC CCI has taken initiatives to reinforce a common South Asian identity given the region's close historical, cultural and geographical ties and the mutual aspiration and desire of all member states to promote the social and economic welfare of people.
The SAARC Chamber has been proactively advocating stronger commercial and economic relations for a prosperous and integrated South Asia. Since its inception, SAARC CCI has played an integral role in providing an institutional framework for promoting economic and regional cooperation in South Asia," said Suraj Vaidya.
He said South Asia comprises three per cent of the world's area, 21 per cent of the world's population and 3.8 per cent (US$ 2.9 trillion) of the global economy. The respective governments are trying to give its people a much higher quality of life racked by high illiteracy, dismissal health care and sanitation.
He remarked that initiatives may be taken to utilize the potential of cooperation in the areas of tourism and energy of the region. He said that with a view to ensuring trade facilitation in the region the problems regarding SAARC visa sticker, removal of trade barriers including NTMs, acceptance of standard certificate, limitations of infrastructure in the land ports, etc should be removed.
He said that businessmen of the region are working for integrated, progressive and prosperous South Asia. The areas of focus include attracting intra-regional investment, industrialization of South Asia via embodying SAARC Investment Parks, nourishing and nurturing the Small and Medium Enterprises and to mentor upcoming entrepreneurs across the region.
He said the leading business communities of all eight countries feel that closer collaboration amongst businessmen is integral for regional integration and is a win-win situation for all stakeholders. He said if India and Pakistan can move ahead keeping their internal issues into a bilateral basket, the other six member states believe that SAARC can make substantive progress by following a clear roadmap of its common goal.