As the reports say, foreign ministers from the seven-nation BIMSTEC group agreed upon deals worth USD 50 billion as part of the meeting on August 29, 2018.

The group has identified and decided to take ahead nearly 167 deals pertaining to connectivity and related projects at an estimated budget of USD 50 billion.

The ministers agreed to approve the projects in principle and will go ahead on the same post a detailed study by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

According to Nepal Foreign Minister Pradeep Gyawali, the group is working on the BIMSTEC Transport Connectivity Master Plan that is expected to be completed by September 2018.

“Several multilateral donor agencies are interested to put money in this master plan. We have received interest from ADB, World Bank and other multilateral agencies to push these projects,” says Gyawali.

As part of the meeting, Gyawali stressed on the need for strong cooperation among the member states with prime focus on energy, connectivity, agriculture, trade and tourism.

The meeting also called for the establishment of key organizations such as BIMSTEC Permanent Secretariat in Bangladesh, BIMSTEC Cultural Industries Observatory (BCIO) in Bhutan and BIMSTEC Centre for Weather and Climate (BCWC) in India as part of institutional development in the region.

In line with the BIMSTEC practice, Foreign Minister Gyawali handed over the BIMSTEC Chair to the Sri Lankan State Minister for Foreign Affairs in view of the 17^th ministerial meeting scheduled to be held in Sri Lanka in 2019.

Also Read:

• Nepal Gears up for 4th BIMSTEC Summit
• BIMSTEC Summit 2018: 16th BIMSTEC Ministerial Meet Kicks Off!
• Fourth BIMSTEC Summit : Nepal All Set, Delegates Arriving In!
• Foreign Secretaries Meet to Discuss Fourth BIMSTEC Plans
• How BIMSTEC 2018 Can Impact Asian, Nepal Geopolitics?

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Nepal Foreign Secretary Shanker Das Bairagi will lead the meeting, which will be attended by all BIMSTEC member countries foreign secretaries— Nepal, India, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Thailand, Bhutan and Sri Lanka.

According to Nepal Foreign Affairs Ministry (MoFA) Assistant Spokesperson Ram Babu Dhakal, this ‘plan-of-action’ meeting will discuss the following matters:

1. All areas of preparation for BIMSTEC Summit
2. Nepal government’s views on taking forward the regional integration initiative
3. Member countries’ VIPs and VVIPs discussion agendas and their outcomes
4. Other Issues including poverty alleviation, climate change and cross-border crime

BIMSTEC to Promote Regional Cooperation:
Gyawali is eagerly looking forward to this meeting as it presents an opportunity to discuss connectivity through road, railways, and power grid network.

The BIMSTEC summit will also play a key role in establishing regional cooperation between SAARC and Southeast Asian Nations’, as the seven countries from both regions are members of BIMSTEC.

Additional Preparations for the Upcoming Summit:
Nepal MoFA says that the preparations are under full swing and official invitations have been sent to all member countries heads and their governments.

As part of the preparations, Nepal has formed several committees including a steering committee led by Nepal PM, KP Sharma Oli and preparation & co-ordination committee lead by Nepal Foreign Minister Pradeep Gyawali.

Conclusion:
Nepal became a BIMSTEC member in 2004, after its formation in 1997.  We hope that the Fourth BIMSTEC Summit will drive the desired regional cooperation and encourage the development of member countries with each other’s support.

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