1. The Prime Minister of the People's Republic
of Bangladesh, Her Excellency Begum Khaleda Zia, the King of Bhutan,
His Majesty Jigme Singye Wangchuck, the Prime Minister of the
Republic of India, His Excellency Mr. P. V. Narasimha Rao, the
President of the Republic of Maldives, His Excellency Mr. Maumoon
Abdul Gayoom, the Prime Minister of Nepal, the Rt. Hon. Girija
Prasad Koirala, the Prime Minister of the Islamic Republic of
Pakistan, His Excellency Mr. Mohammed Nawaz Sharif and the President
of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Shri Lanka, His Excellency
Mr. Ranasinghe Premadasa met at the Seventh Summit of the South
Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) at Dhaka, Bangladesh
on 10 - 11 April, 1993.
REGIONAL COOPERATION
2. The Heads of State or Government reiterated their commitment
to the principles and objectives of the South Asian Association
for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), to the five principles of
peaceful co-existence, the UN Charter and non-alignment. The
Heads of State or Government noted the progress achieved in
regional cooperation under the aegis of SAARC. They felt that
time was now opportune for SAARC to provide a further dynamic
impetus to activities in the core areas of economic, social
and cultural cooperation in the SAARC region.
INTEGRATED PROGRAMME OF ACTION (IPA)
3. The Heads of State or Government welcomed the recent specific
steps taken to consolidate and further streamline IPA-related
SAARC activities. They also stressed the need for a progressive
movement towards undertaking more well-defined, target-oriented
and time- bound projects and programmes to ensure tangible benefits
for the peoples of South Asia.
ACTIVITIES OUTSIDE IPA
4. The Leaders welcomed the recent decisions to institutionalize
cooperation in the core areas.
MORE BUSINESS-LIKE AND FUNCTIONAL APPROACH IN THE CONDUCT OF
SAARC MEETINGS
5. The Heads of State or Government approved the recommendations
of the Eleventh Session of the Council of Ministers for adopting
a more business-like and functional approach in the conduct
of Summit meetings. They also noted with satisfaction the guidelines
and procedures approved by the Eleventh Session of the Council
in this respect relating to other SAARC meetings. They decided
to meet informally whenever necessary, between Summits.
CONSENSUS ON ERADICATION OF POVERTY IN SOUTH ASIA
6. Conscious that the sheer magnitude and complexity of South
Asian poverty constituted a major political and economic challenge,
the Heads of State or Government reiterated their commitment
to continue to accord a high priority to its eradication from
the region in the shortest possible time.
7. They pledged to overcome this challenge through the implementation
of appropriate pro-poor development strategies at macro and
micro levels.
8. In this context, the Heads of State or Government welcomed
the Report of the Independent South Asian Commission on Poverty
Alleviation established at the Colombo Summit. The Report provided
valuable insight and illustrative examples of successful poverty
alleviation programmes in individual Member States.
9. Acknowledging that the abiding human qualities of dignity,
creativity and productive potential are eroded by chronic poverty,
the Heads of State or Government reiterated their commitment
to empowering the poor for enhanced growth, consistent with
human development and equity.
10. The Heads of State or Government committed their Governments
unequivocally to the eradication of poverty in South Asia, preferably
by the year 2002 A.D. through an Agenda of Action, which would,
inter-alia, embody :
- A strategy of social mobilization involving the building
of organizations of the poor and their empowerment through appropriate
national support mechanisms, with the assistance of respective
Governments;
- A policy of decentralized agricultural development and sharply
focussed household level food security through universal provision
of `Daal-Bhaat' or basic nutritional needs;
- A policy of decentralized small scale labour intensive industrialization,
with the choice of efficient and cost-effective technology;
- A policy of human development, including the enhancement of
the social role and status of poor women, the provision of universal
primary education, skill development, primary health care, shelter
for the poor and protection of children; - A policy to support
the above initiatives with adequate financial resources.
11. The Heads of State or Government stressed that within the
overall conceptual approach of `Daal-Bhaat', the right to work
and the right to primary education should receive priority.
12. The Leaders also underscored the critical link between
the success of national efforts aimed at poverty alleviation
and the external factors affecting growth and development. They
urged all major actors in the world economic scene, particularly
the industrialized countries and multilateral and regional financial
institutions, and Non-Governmental Organizations to create an
enabling international atmosphere that is supportive of poverty
alleviation programmes in South Asia. This would require a new
dialogue with donors.
13. The Heads of State or Government agreed to the follow-up
action indicated below :
- a national level pro-poor plan to be drawn up by each Member
State. This plan is to be harmonized with the open economy and
structural adjustment strategies;
- to share during the next Summit, information regarding the
progress achieved.
TRADE, MANUFACTURES AND SERVICES
14. The Heads of State or Government reaffirmed the need to
liberalize trade as early as possible through a step by step
approach. They underscored that this should be done in such
a manner that all countries in the region could share the benefits
of trade expansion equitably.
15. In this context, the Heads of State or Government welcomed
the finalization of the framework Agreement on SAARC Preferential
Trading Arrangement (SAPTA). They expressed their deep satisfaction
over the signing of the framework Agreement. The Leaders stressed
that all necessary steps should be taken to begin the first
round of trade negotiations to exchange trade preferences among
Member States under the Arrangement.
16. The Heads of State or Government further underlined the
critical importance of urgently promoting intra-regional cooperation,
particularly in the area of manufactures in order to enhance
the productive capacity of the Member Countries, and to promote
sustained growth and development to prevent the marginalization
of South Asia's trade interest in the larger global context.
ENVIRONMENT
17. The Heads of State or Government expressed their deep concern
at the unabated degradation of the environment and recurrence
of devastating natural disasters. They also underscored the
risks and dangers involved in overlooking the challenge posed
by these problems. They expressed their commitment to implementing
at all levels - national, bilateral, regional and global - programmes
for the protection and preservation of the environment and prevention
of its degradation. The Heads of State or Government recognized
that the completion of the Regional Study on the "`Greenhouse
Effect' and its Impact on the Region" was a significant
step forward in promoting regional cooperation in this vital
area. They also stressed the importance of continuing the ongoing
SAARC activities in the field of environment.
18. The Heads of State or Government welcomed the outcome of
the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development
held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 and underscored the imperative
need to ensure the flow of resources to successfully implement
the wide range of suggested initiatives and actions contained
in Agenda 21. The Heads of State or Government noted that all
international actions in the area of environment should be based
on common but differential responsibilities, collective endeavours
and a balanced perspective. Such actions, they stressed, must
consider the protection of environment, economic growth and
eradication of poverty as mutually reinforcing. All environmental
initiatives, they underscored, must preclude the imposition
of arbitrary and one-sided pre-conditions and ensure a harmonious
blending of environmental and development concerns. They further
noted with satisfaction the establishment of the Commission
on Sustainable Development. They urged that the Commission approach
environmental problems of developed and developing countries
in an equitable manner.
19. The Heads of State or Government expressed their satisfaction
over the adoption of a common position by Member States prior
to the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development.
They expressed their determination to continue in future the
practice of intra-SAARC consultations on matters of common concern.
POPULATION
20. Recognizing the sovereign right of all countries to promote,
adopt and implement their population policies and mindful of
their cultures, values and traditions, the Heads of State or
Government stressed the need to integrate demographic objectives
and population strategies in the formulation of the development
strategies of Member Countries. In this context, they also noted
the importance of adequate investment in the health and education
sectors for the success of their population programmes. They
agreed that cooperation among Member States should be strengthened,
both through sharing experiences and in other practical ways,
to enhance their capacity to deal with the population problem.
The Leaders urged Governments of developed countries, as well
as all concerned international and regional organizations, to
strengthen their financial and technical support in the areas
of health and education as part of their strategy of assistance
to developing countries in their development efforts.
21. The Heads of State or Government welcomed the offer of
Nepal to host a SAARC Ministerial Conference on Women and Family
Health in Kathmandu in October/November 1993.
SHELTER
22. The Heads of State or Government reiterated that housing
was a basic right for all people and that Governments should
act as facilitator and supporter of shelter programmes initiated
by the people. They urged Member States to continue to work
towards the global objective of "Shelter for All by the
Year 2000".
CHILDREN
23. Reaffirming their commitment to accord the highest priority
to child survival, protection and development, the Heads of
State or Government noted with satisfaction that all Member
States had completed their National Plans of Action on Children.
They reiterated their call at the Colombo Summit to continue
to ensure coordinated follow-up action by Member States on their
respective plans.
24. The Heads of State or Government endorsed the "Colombo
Resolution on Children" adopted by the Second SAARC Ministerial
Conference on Children held at Colombo in September 1992 and
urged Member States to implement programmes as appropriate in
their respective national contexts, to achieve the illustrative
goals embodied in the Resolution, and the goals of the SAARC
Plan of Action on Children.
25. The Heads of State or Government noted, in particular,
the need to take effective measures to protect children against
all forms of neglect, cruelty and exploitation and agreed to
promote cooperation among Member States in devising such measures.
YOUTH
26. Stressing that the youth of South Asia constituted a vital
resource for national development and that mobilization of their
latent power was imperative, the Heads of State or Government
focussed special attention on the needs of the Youth in South
Asia and their development.
27. The Leaders noted that the youth of South Asia faced a
number of serious problems requiring urgent attention and remedial
measures. They welcomed the offer of the Maldives to host a
Ministerial Conference on Youth in South Asia in 1994 to address
the problems of the Youth and focus on the broad theme of youth
and development. They also agreed to designate 1994 as the "SAARC
Year of the Youth".
PLAN OF ACTION FOR THE DISABLED PERSONS
28. The Heads of State or Government while recalling their
decision at the Male' Summit to observe 1993 as the "SAARC
Year of Disabled Persons", adopted the Regional Plan of
Action for the Disabled Persons. They urged Member States to
take concrete steps to implement the Plan.
29. They welcomed the offer of Pakistan to host a Ministerial
Conference on Disabled Persons in September 1993.
WOMEN IN DEVELOPMENT
30. While reviewing the situation of women in the region, it
was noted with satisfaction that over a period of time, the
content of regional cooperation which addresses the issue of
development, gender and equality for women has steadily grown
in SAARC. The Heads of State or Government hoped that the cooperation
thus developed will enable Member States to achieve the ultimate
goal of bringing women into the mainstream of development with
independence and equality.
31. The Heads of State or Government recalled that in pursuance
of their collective will expressed in the Male' Summit to observe
the 1990s as the " SAARC Decade of the Girl Child",
Member States had undertaken to formulate National Plans of
Action for the improvement of the condition of the Girl Child
giving priority to her survival, protection and development.
They expressed satisfaction that some Member States had already
completed this task and others were expected to do so soon.
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
32. The Heads of State or Government emphasized that cooperation
in the field of Science and Technology was of utmost importance
in order to accelerate the process of development in South Asia.
33. They called for further intensification of efforts by Member
States in this important area, particularly to facilitate research
and exchange of information through networking arrangements
in the field of bio-technology, genetic engineering, energy
modelling techniques and other identified areas of cooperation.
TERRORISM
34. The Heads of State or Government reiterated their unequivocal
condemnation of all acts, methods and practices of terrorism
as criminal. They strongly deplored the adverse consequences
of terrorism.
35. They noted with grave concern that the efforts to combat
the growing threat of terrorism had resulted in the diversion
of valuable scarce resources from urgent development programmes.
36. The Leaders reiterated the need to give high priority to
the enactment of enabling legislation at the national level
to give effect to the SAARC Regional Convention on Suppression
of Terrorism, while urging the Member States which had not yet
done so, to make every effort to finalize this matter before
the Eighth SAARC Summit.
37. While recognizing that some progress had been achieved
in the fields of consultation and exchange of information, they
stressed the need for further enhancing cooperation in these
fields as well as for coordinated action. They called for the
expeditious implementation of the recommendations formulated
for advancing cooperation in this regard in pursuance of their
decision at the Colombo Summit.
DRUG TRAFFICKING AND DRUG ABUSE
38. The Heads of State or Government reiterated their grave
concern at the growing menace of drug trafficking in the region
and the aggravation of the problem of drug abuse among the South
Asian population, particularly the youth.
39. They recognized the devastating impact of drug abuse on
the very fabric of society and the serious threat to security
and stability posed by drug trafficking through its growing
linkages with organized crime, illicit arms trade and terrorism.
40. The Heads of State or Government were gratified to note
the expanding cooperation among Member States to combat and
eliminate the scourge of drug trafficking and drug abuse.
41. They reiterated the need for further strengthening cooperation
in this field and called for the expeditious implementation
of the recommendations formulated for this purpose in pursuance
of their decision at the Colombo Summit.
SECURITY OF SMALL STATES
42. The Heads of State or Government reaffirmed their commitment
to pay special attention to the monitoring of the security of
small States and underscored the need to consider special measures
of support to preserve their sovereign independence, territorial
integrity and the well-being of their people. They further noted
that real protection of small and weaker States should be firmly
rooted in the Rule of Law and strict adherence to universally
accepted principles and norms relating to the sovereign rights
and territorial integrity of all States - big or small. This,
they stressed, should be ensured by all countries either severally
or collectively through the pursuit of appropriate actions.
PEOPLE-TO-PEOPLE CONTACT
43. The Heads of State or Government stressed the need to further
promote people-to-people contact in order to ensure increased
involvement of peoples of South Asia in the process of regional
cooperation. In this context, they noted that the formulation
of guidelines and procedures for extending recognition to regional
apex bodies would facilitate participation of these bodies in
promoting regional cooperation at the people-to-people level.
44. The Leaders expressed the hope that the recent recognition
of the SAARC Chamber of Commerce and Industry would contribute
positively to enhancing cooperation in the crucial areas of
trade and economic relations.
45. The Heads of State or Government expressed their appreciation
to the Government and people of India for hosting the First
South Asian Festival of SAARC Countries in 1992. The Festival
provided the people of the region the opportunity to share in
the rich cultural heritage of South Asia. The Heads of State
or Government hoped that the South Asian Festival would become
a regular feature.
ASSOCIATION OF SAARC SPEAKERS AND PARLIAMENTARIANS
46. The Heads of State or Government welcomed the initiative
of the Speakers of Parliaments of SAARC Countries in forming
an "Association of SAARC Speakers and Parliamentarians".
They were of the view that the establishment of this Association
would add another important dimension to the process of regional
cooperation.
SOUTH ASIAN DEVELOPMENT FUND
47. The Heads of State or Government endorsed the recommendation
of the Council of Ministers for the establishment of an Inter-Governmental
Group (IGG) on South Asian Development Fund (SADF) on an ad-hoc
basis. They directed that the IGG define in clear terms the
size, structure, resources and operational modalities of the
proposed Fund. They also directed the IGG to examine the complementarities
between the SAARC Fund for Regional Projects (SFRP) and SADF,
and their relationship, including the possibility of their merger.
They welcomed the offer of the Maldives to host the meeting
of IGG.
INTERNATIONAL POLITICAL DEVELOPMENTS
48. The Heads of State or Government had wide-ranging discussions
on the current global political trends and future prospects,
particularly those issues that affect South Asia. In this context,
they reiterated their deep commitment to the purposes and principles
of the UN Charter and reaffirmed their resolve to strengthen
the United Nations as the central instrument for peace, security,
disarmament, development and cooperation among the nations of
the world. To this end, the Leaders supported all constructive
initiatives aimed at strengthening the United Nations. They,
however, underscored that any move to adapt or reform the United
Nations must be undertaken with the sole objective of rendering
the United Nations more democratic, efficient and effective
and not to limit the focus of its attention to a narrow and
isolated range of objectives.
49. The Heads of State or Government reiterated their firm
commitment to the principles and objectives of the Non-aligned
Movement and underlined the continued validity and relevance
of these principles and objectives in the contemporary global
political and economic context. They recalled the important
role the Movement had been playing in strengthening international
peace, promoting development and establishing more equitable
and just economic relations and enhancing international cooperation
in all areas. They expressed their deep conviction that the
Movement's innate strength uniquely equipped it to continue
to play a most constructive role in laying the foundations and
defining the characteristics of a new world order which should
be based on the principles of justice, equity and democracy
in international relations. In this context, the Heads of State
or Government welcomed the success of the Jakarta Summit of
the Non-aligned countries and called for the expeditious implementation
of its decisions.
50. The Heads of State or Government noted that the end of
the cold war presented new opportunities and challenges. They
observed that despite many positive developments and recent
successes in resolving some regional conflicts, the international
political scene was still marred by strife and tension. They
expressed their serious concern over the unfortunate and tragic
consequences of ethnic conflict and violence afflicting people
and communities in many parts of the world. They stressed that
efforts must be intensified to find peaceful and viable solutions
to conflicts of long standing nature and new problems through
greater respect for international law and universally accepted
humanitarian norms and standards.
51. The Heads of State or Government noted a number of recent
positive developments in the area of nuclear, chemical and conventional
disarmament including the agreements on bilateral arms reductions
between the United States and the Russian Federation. They expressed
their hope that the implementation of the far-reaching arms
reduction agreed in the Washington Agreement of June 1992 and
START II signed in Moscow in January 1993 would be successfully
carried out. The Leaders urged all Nuclear-Weapon States to
collectively endeavour to attain the ultimate goal of complete
elimination of nuclear arsenals in the shortest possible time.
52. They also underscored the imperative to further broaden
and deepen the dimensions to disarmament and to complement bilateral
approaches to disarmament with effective multilateral approaches.
While welcoming the recent progress in arms reduction at the
global level, the Leaders were convinced that this objective
could be best achieved through the promotion of mutual trust
and confidence among Member States.
INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC ISSUES
53. The Heads of State or Government noted that while it was
important to build peace and create conditions of stability
in the world, it was equally important to promote economic and
social development. They underscored that international cooperation
for development and eradication of poverty were inextricably
linked with the preservation of international peace and security
and hence needed to be treated on an equal footing and pursued
with equal vigour. The Heads of State or Government expressed
their grave concern over the continuing deterioration in economic
situation in the majority of developing countries. The economies
of developing countries, they observed, continued to suffer
as a result of limited market access for their exports, dwindling
resource flows, absence of adequate foreign investment, mounting
external indebtedness, inadequate transfer of technology and
the inequities in the global monetary, financial and trading
systems. The Heads of State or Government noted that although
the developing countries themselves had the primary responsibility
for their economic development, the role of developed countries
remained central to the revival of the growth of the world economy
- in particular the economies of the developing countries.
54. The Heads of State or Government reiterated the vital importance
of economic interdependence among nations and of the need for
reviving North-South dialogue. They fully endorsed the view
that there should be more equitable economic opportunities for
all nations. These should include such important features as
the strengthening of a free, open and non-discriminatory multilateral
trading system, effective macro-economic coordination and fiscal
discipline to ensure stable conditions conducive to development
in the global economy. They also reiterated their firm support
for the broadening of the coordination of international macro-economic
policies to take into account concerns of all countries, specially
the developing countries. Referring to the competing demands
for capital and investment resources, the Heads of State or
Government underscored the need to ensure the adequate flow
of investment resources to the developing countries through
increasing global savings and a more equitable utilization of
the peace dividends. In this context the Heads of State or Government
also underscored the need to fulfil the internationally agreed
aid targets for the developing countries and the Least Developed
Countries. They emphasized on the need for exceptional finance
to facilitate implementation of economic reform programmes in
SAARC Countries.
55. The Heads of State or Government also strongly underlined
the need to continue efforts to seek a comprehensive, durable
and growth-oriented solution to the external indebtedness of
the developing countries. This, they stressed, was essential
to accelerate the process of growth in these countries. A lasting
solution to the debt crisis, the Heads of State or Government
noted, must take into account the need to significantly reduce
the stock and service of all types of debts of indebted developing
countries to augment the concessional aid flows to SAARC Countries
and work out anticipatory measures to prevent the recurrence
and proliferation of the debt problem.
56. The Heads of State or Government also underlined the importance
of a strengthened and liberalized international trading system.
In this context, they noted that the successful conclusion of
the Uruguay Round of Multilateral Trade Negotiations was a matter
of great importance to the developing countries. Failure of
the Round, the Leaders noted, would only further impair economic
growth and encourage protectionist policy seriously weakening
the multilateral trading system. The Heads of State or Government
strongly urged the major partners in the Negotiations to demonstrate
their political will and take positive steps to ensure without
further delay a satisfactory conclusion of the Uruguay Round.
They further stressed that although the main thrust of these
negotiations in the recent past had been in respect of new issues,
there was an imperative need to ensure that the Uruguay Round
fully take into account the concerns and interests of developing
countries. This, the Heads of State or Government stressed,
was particularly important. The Leaders underscored the need
to speedily conclude the current round of negotiations in a
transparent, balanced and expeditious manner. They also stressed
that before the conclusion of the Uruguay Round of Multilateral
Trade Negotiations, an evaluation of results be held from the
point of view of developing countries.
57. The Heads of State or Government expressed their concern
over the increasing stock of anti-dumping and countervailing
duty investigations against the exports of developing countries
and the new threats to a liberal trading order in the form of
measures taken in pursuit of the goals relating to workers'
rights and the environment.
PROJECTION OF COLLECTIVE POSITIONS
58. The Heads of State or Government were of the view that
greater consultations among the delegations of SAARC Countries
in all international fora on the major issues of common concern
to them would be in the interest of all their countries. They
felt that the development of collective positions on such issues
in the international fora would enhance the international profile
of South Asia and would enable the countries in the region to
articulate their position on them more effectively. They reiterated
their common resolve to concert their position in all international
fora and negotiations with a view to deriving maximum benefits
from them in accordance with their needs and common priorities.
59. The Heads of State or Government underscored the vital
importance attached by their countries to the forthcoming Second
World Conference on Human Rights in 1993, the World Population
Conference in 1994 and the 1995 World Conference on Women. They
also supported the convening of a World Summit for Social Development.
The Heads of State or Government stressed the need to develop
a common South Asian perspective on the issues to be discussed
by these important international conferences. They also underscored
the imperative to coordinate the position of SAARC countries
in order to ensure a balanced equitable and action oriented
outcome of these conferences.
OBSERVER STATUS
60. The Heads of State or Government decided that an Expert
Group of the Member States will examine the various requests
for observer status at SAARC/SAARC meetings in all its aspects
on the basis of a working paper to be prepared by the Secretariat
and make appropriate recommendations to the Nineteenth Session
of the Standing Committee. In this respect, they welcomed the
offer of Sri Lanka to host the Expert Group Meeting.
CONCLUSION
61. The Heads of State or Government expressed their deep satisfaction
over the positive outcome of the Seventh SAARC Summit and expressed
their conviction that this Summit would greatly contribute towards
strengthening the policies and cooperative actions of the Member
States in response to the challenges of the 1990s and beyond
in areas where SAARC has a distinct contribution to make. They
also reiterated once again their determination to strengthen
and enrich SAARC as an instrument - endowing it with a clear
set of forward looking goals and objectives as well as all the
requisite institutional capacities - so that it can continue
to work to enrich not only the lives of its own members but
also promote peace, progress and stability in South Asia in
a larger context.
DATE AND VENUE OF THE EIGHTH MEETING OF THE SAARC HEADS OF
STATE OR GOVERNMENT
62. The Heads of State or Government gratefully accepted the
offer of India to host the Eighth SAARC Summit in 1994.
63. The Heads of State or Government of Bhutan, India, the
Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka expressed their sincere
appreciation for the exemplary manner in which the Prime Minister
of Bangladesh had conducted the Meeting and guided its proceedings
in her capacity as Chairperson. They expressed their deep gratitude
for the warm and generous hospitality extended to them by the
Government and people of Bangladesh and for the excellent arrangements
made for the Meeting.