SAARC Foreign Ministers met informally in New York on 25 September 2014 on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).

Dr. Mariyam Shakeela, Minister of Environment and Energy and Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs of Maldives chaired the informal meeting organized by the Permanent Mission of Maldives in New York. Nepal holds the Chair of SAARC following its Seventeenth Summit in November 2014.

Opening the meeting, the Chairperson highlighted the important initiatives taken by Nepal in the implementation of the decisions of the eighteenth Summit.

Addressing the meeting, the Secretary-General briefed on current status of implementation of important decisions at the Thirty-fifth Session of the Council of Ministers. Further, he focused on progress in key areas of cooperation among the SAARC Member States since Thirty-fifth Session of Council of Ministers in Maldives, 20 February 2014. He also appraised the recommendations made in the Forty –sixth Meeting of the Programming Committee in Kathmandu and also regarding selective closure/merger of SAARC Regional Centres and Foty-seventh Sessions of the Programming Committee in Kathmandu regarding Engagement with observers.

Following the presentation by the Secretary-General, the Ministers deliberated upon several measures on current status of progress in different areas of regional cooperation in SAARC (since Thirty –fifth Session of the Council of Ministers, expeditious implementation of decisions taken by the SAARC Charter Bodies, including the SAARC Ministerial Meetings and The Eighteenth SAARC Summit and Thirty –sixth Session of the Council of Ministers- Brief by the host country about preparations.

The closing remarks were made by the Chairperson of the Council of Ministers.

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H. E. Mr. Ahmed Saleem, Secretary-General of SAARC, addressed the Second High-level Meeting for South-South Cooperation on Child Rights in New Delhi on 25 October 2013.

Organized by the Ministry of Women & Child Development of the Government of India, the Meeting was inaugurated on 23 October 2013. 

In his presentation at Session 5of the meeting devoted to the theme, Regional Perspectives and Partnerships, the Secretary-General highlighted the initiatives taken by SAARC in the area of child rights. Referring to the SAARC Social Charter, he stated, “The SAARC Social Charter, signed in January 2004, addresses the issue of promotion of the Rights and well-being of the Child, stating that the child should be entitled to grow and develop in health with due protection. The Charter advocates special services to be provided for the child and its mother.  The Charter stresses to undertake specific steps to reduce maternal morbidity and mortality rates. Most importantly, the Charter highlights the need for education, literacy, and skill development amongst adolescents and youth, especially of girls, and elimination of child or early marriage in the region. The Charter extends its provisions to the children in conflict with law, street, orphaned, displaced, abandoned and children affected by armed conflict and affected by drug abuse as well.”

The Secretary-General further said, “The SAARC Convention on Regional Arrangements for the Promotion of Child Welfare in South Asia and the SAARC Convention on Preventing and Combating Trafficking in Women and Children for Prostitution are other important regional instruments. These instruments complement to the participatory rights of the child as a vital prerequisite for realization of human rights and for achievement of Millennium Development Goals and SAARC Development Goals.”

Mr. Ibrahim Zuhuree, Director, Social Affairs Division, SAARC Secretariat also attended the High-level Meeting in New Delhi.

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The Symposium on the Best Practices in Poverty Alleviation opened in Kathmandu today.

Organized by the SAARC Secretariat in collaboration with the United Nations Development Proramme (UNDP) under the SAARC-UNDP Partnership Programme, the Symposium brings together the government representatives and community beneficiaries from all the Member States and the representatives of SAARC’s development partners, among others, to discuss the core issues related to poverty alleviation in the region.

A large number of high ranking officials of the Government of Nepal, Heads of Diplomatic Missions and regional and international organizations in Kathmandu, representatives of civil society and business community and media personnel attended the Inaugural Session organized at Hotel Radisson this morning.

 

Delivering the Welcome Address at the Inaugural Session of the Symposium, H. E. Mr. Ahmed Saleem, Secretary-General of SAARC recapitulated the initiatives taken by SAARC in reducing poverty in the region. In his address, he made particular references to the directives of the successive SAARC Summits in the area of poverty alleviation. Highlighting the objectives of the Symposium, the Secretary-General stated, “The primary purpose of the Symposium is to facilitate the sharing of the best practices in poverty alleviation and to develop strategies to upscale these practices individually or collectively to eradicate poverty from our region.” He further said, “Following the deliberations at the Symposium, the Compendium on the best practices in poverty alleviation will be published by the SAARC Secretariat.”

Rt. Hon. Khil Raj Regmi, Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Nepal, inaugurated the Symposium. In his Address, he brought to the fore the ongoing efforts of Nepal in alleviating poverty at the national level.  

On the occasion, the Rt. Hon. Chairman of the Council of Ministers also launched the SAARC Regional Poverty Profile, 2009-10.  The Profile is aimed at sharing of the best practices and experiences towards poverty alleviation in the region.

Hon. Dr. Rabindra Kumar Shakya, Vice Chairman of the National Planning Commission of Nepal chaired the Inaugural Session.  In his address, the Vice Chairman highlighted the vision of the Planning Commission towards poverty alleviation in Nepal.

Hon. Mr. Saumitra Chaudhuri, Member of the Planning Commission of India also addressed the Inaugural Session. In his Address, the Member apprised the participants about the success stories of India in poverty alleviation.

Other speakers at the Inaugural Session included Dr. Ponna Wignaraja, Chairman of the South Asian Perspective Network Association of Sri Lanka and the Vice Chairman of the Independent South Asian Commission on Poverty Alleviation; and Ms. Caitilin Wiesen, Manager, UNDP Asia Pacific Regional Centre, Bangkok.

In January 2004, the Twelfth SAARC Summit declared poverty alleviation as the “overarching goal” of SAARC. Since then, the Association has undertaken several measures to free South Asia from poverty. 

SAARC currently observes the decade, 2006-2015, as the SAARC Decade of Poverty Alleviation.

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H.E.Mr. Arjun B. Thapa, Secretary-General of SAARC, has undertaken an introductory visit to the Maldives from 19 to 21August 2014.

During the visit, H.E. Mr. Thapacalled on H.E. Mr. Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom, President of Maldives and briefed the president on the status of preparations for the 18th SAARC Summit, scheduled to be held in Nepal in the latter half of November. Discussions were held on reinvigorating SAARC and making SAARC more relevant and effective, through deeper and more meaningful regional integration. In this regard, President Yameen expressed his keenness to work with the Secretariat and the Member States of SAARC to produce favorable results from existing mechanisms such as SAFTA, as per the expectations of the peoples of the region.                                                                                                                                                    

H.E. Mr. Thapa also held discussions with H.E. Ms. DunyaMaumoon, Minister of Foreign Affairs and H.E. Dr. Ali Naseer Mohamed, Foreign Secretary. The meetings focused on a way forward for SAARC under the Chairmanship of the Maldives, in the activities leading to the 18th Summit. Foreign Minister and the Foreign Secretary briefed the Secretary General on Maldives’ preparations on hosting an Informal Meeting of the SAARC Council of Ministers, on the Sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

H. E. the Foreign Secretary of Maldives hosted a lunch in honour of H. E. the Secretary-General of SAARC and his spouse on 20 August.

During the visit, H.E. Mr. Thapa also met with Mr. Ahmed Saleem, Former Secretary General of SAARC.

H. E. the Secretary-General was accompanied his spouse, Mrs. PabitraThapa and Ms. Fathimath Najwa, Director at the SAARC.

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