In the 2020 South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) conference, the leaders of the eight SAARC countries have chalked out plans to curb coronavirus.<\/p>\n
Prime Ministers of Nepal, India, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Bhutan, Maldives and Sri Lanka and a representative of the Pakistani PM participated in the first ever video conference on March 15, 2020.<\/p>\n
All the leaders agreed to establish a joint response mechanism to stave off Coronavirus (COVID-19)<\/a> threat in the region. They also agreed to evaluate the long-term implications of the coronavirus on the regional economy and find the best strategies for early recovery.<\/p>\n Initiating the conference from New Delhi, Indian PM Narendra Modi proposed a rapid response team of doctors and specialists, surveillance software, online training and common research mechanism at the disposal of the SAARC to combat the COVID-19.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n He also proposed to establish a \u2018COVID-19 Emergency Fund\u2019 and agreed to provide USD 10 million as initial contribution. He, then, requested the other leaders to voluntarily contribute to the fund.<\/p>\n Other countries including Nepal approved the \u2018Emergency Fund\u2019 proposal initiated by India and agreed to contribute to the fund.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Meanwhile, Nepal PM KP Sharma Oli proposed to establish a SAARC emergency medical facility to deal with the identical health challenges in the region.<\/p>\n He shared the strategies and policies initiated by the Nepali Government to impede the coronavirus spread in the country.<\/p>\n \u201cEven though we had detected one suspected case, the COVID-19 test proved negative. Yet, we are aware of the high risk of possible outbreak at any time. We remain alert to prevent it,\u201d said PM Oli.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Likewise, all the other leaders expressed their opinions on the coronavirus outbreak.<\/p>\n This was for the first time the top South Asian leaders have participated in the SAARC summit<\/a> since 2014 when the last summit took place in Nepal.<\/p>\n Coronavirus outbreak in SAARC countries<\/strong><\/p>\n Coronavirus Stories:<\/strong><\/p>\n In the 2020 South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) conference, the leaders of the eight…<\/span><\/p>\n\n
\n\n