Rana calls for greater intra-regional cooperation

By A Staff Reporter,Kathmandu, Dec. 16: Past President of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI), and hospitality entrepreneur, Bhawani Rana, has called the regional business leaders, at the Purvodaya Conference in India, to promote the intra-regional trade in the South Asian region. 

"The SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) is the least integrated region in the world that conducts less than 5 per cent of the total trade within the region. Our regional neighbour, ASEAN’s intra-regional trade volume is above 35 per cent while that of European Union is around 60 per cent," read her speech shared with the media. 

The 2-day Purvodaya Conference that concluded on Sunday was organised by the Ministry of External Affairs of India, Confederation of Indian Industries and The Energy Forum to discuss the issues of regionalism in our region which is characterised by poor integration and poor cooperation. Stating that the African Continental Free Trade Area and Southern Common Market in Latin America have better policy arrangements to promote trade and investment within their respective regions, Rana said that now is the time to look at it with a different perspective. 

"Trade barriers, inadequate infrastructure, lack of political commitment to finding solutions, restrictive documentation and procedures, poor connectivity, and lack of common will to resolve the issues are the reasons behind the present ‘not-so-well’ climate of cooperation and exchange," she said. 

According to her, Nepal can benefit from the other regional mechanisms like the BIMSTEC, Indian Ocean Rim Association and BBIN as well. 

She highlighted deep economic relations between Nepal and India, and suggested both the countries to expand connectivity between various cities across the border. 

"Enhanced road, rail, and air links between cities such as Biratnagar-Patna, Nepalgunj-Lucknow, and Mahendranagar-Dehradun can create favourable environment for trade and tourism," said Rana. 

Purvodaya is one of various initiatives launched by India that aims to promote India's neighbourhood policy through better regional connectivity.