Trade experts and journalists from South Asia have urged the regional states to separate trade relations with neighbouring countries from politics to benefit from the regional trade potentials. The trade experts and journalists from all eight countries of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc) laid emphasis on this suggestion at the journalists' summit titled 'Benefits of South Asia Economic Integration' in UAE.
Reynolds National Centre for Business Journalism and Walter Cronkite School of Journalism ASU, Arizona State University organised the event in Abu Dubai, during last week of February 2019. Over 50 journalists from Pakistan, India, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Maldives and Bhutan participated in the summit where business experts from United States, India and World Bank gave detailed presentations on trade among states of the region and highlighted their trade potentials.
The participants called for promotion of durable peace among the South Asian States particularly between the nuclear armed Pakistan and India. The experts said that Pakistan and India have a huge potential of a bilateral trade of US$ 37 billion against current trade of US$ 2 billion that is much behind the huge potential.
They suggested lowering of tariffs among the member states and abolition of para-tariffs and negative lists and promotion of people-to-people contacts among states of the region. They said that economic inter-dependence is great harbinger of peace.
They noted current Sino-Indian trade stood at nearly US$ 100 billion hence they suggested that Pakistan and India could also take it to the level of US$ 20 billion. For the utilisation of the trade potential, they said that Pakistan and India are required to first gap the trust-deficit because they always remain in a constant state of conflict.
Identifying connectivity as a major step forward they called for increasing flights between both countries. They said that prior to air connectivity, both countries would be required to soften visa regimes and regulations for foreigners.
An official of the World Bank suggested trade facilitation and value chains as two main applications of economic integration for the region. He noted that South Asian countries are selling products in domestic market instead of negotiating trade agreement with each other. The participants also discussed trade relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan and decline in their bilateral trade. They also floated the proposal for formation of South Asia Business Journalists Association to play role in the economic integration of the region.
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