H. E. Mr. Amjad Hussain B. Sial, Secretary General of SAARC, addressed the Inaugural Session of the Regional Conference on Scaling-up the Nutritional Care of Women in South Asia in Kathmandu on 07 May 2018 as the Chief Guest.

 

Devoted to the theme, “Stop Stunting – Power of Maternal Nutrition”, the Regional Conference was co-hosted by SAARC and UNICEF.

 

In his address at the Inaugural Session, the Secretary General welcomed the participation of over 120 delegates from the region and other parts of the world. Touching upon the theme of the Conference, he stated, “Good nutrition and a healthy diet is important in every phase of life. It is even more crucial, during pregnancy, both for the health of the mother and the baby during the first years of the babies’ life.” He further said, “One third of world’s women with anaemia live in South Asia. Improving nutritional situation of women and children in South Asia requires reaching out to women during adolescence, pre-conception and pregnancy stage. In the meanwhile, combining nutrition-specific interventions with measures aimed at empowering women is essential.”

 

Kathmandu, 07 May 2018

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The Twelfth Informal Meeting of SAARC Finance Ministers was held in Manila, the Philippines, on 04 May 2018 on the sidelines of the 51st Annual Meeting of Asian Development Bank. The Meeting, attended by the Hon’ble Finance Ministers/Heads of Delegations from the SAARC Member States, was held under the Chairmanship of Hon’ble Finance Minister of Nepal, H. E. Mr. Yuba Raj Khatiwada.

 

In his opening statement, the Chairman thanked ADB for its continuous support to SAARC. He also commended excellent arrangements made by SAARC Secretariat and ADB for the Meeting. He underscored that concerted efforts should be made to attain the objective of South Asian Economic Union, in phased manner, as desired by the leaders of SAARC.

 

The Secretary General of SAARC, H.E. Mr. Amjad Hussain B. Sial, made a statement on “Review of Progress in Transition to South Asian Economic Union” and underlined that the Member States may make sincere efforts for implementing the objective of achieving South Asian Economic Union, as envisioned by the Leaders of SAARC. He recalled that in order to enable SAARC to achieve regional economic integration, ADB had agreed to provide support to SAARC in: (i) economic integration studies; (ii) infrastructure; (iii) connectivity; and (iv) energy. He appreciated the important contribution of ADB in various areas of regional economic cooperation under the framework of SAARC and hoped that ADB would continue to do so for the economic development of the South Asian region.

 

Mr. Wencai Zhang, Vice President of Asian Development Bank briefed the Meeting about the status of collaboration between ADB and SAARC. He reaffirmed ADB’s commitment to continue collaboration with SAARC for economic development and prosperity of the peoples in the region.

 

The Finance Ministers/Heads of Delegation briefed the Meeting about the current status of economic progress achieved by them, appreciated the contribution made by ADB in their economic growth and hoped that SAARC would make further progress to achieve its full potential for the benefit of peoples of the region.

 

Mr. Lei Lei Song, ADB expert made a presentation on “Artificial Intelligence Anxiety? Technology and Jobs for South Asia” which is one of the criticial contemporary economic issues affecting the SAARC Countries.

 

Kathmandu, 04 May 2018

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H. E. Mr. Amjad Hussian B. Sial, Secretary General of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), called on Hon. Mr. Pradeep Kumar Gyawali, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Nepal this morning. While felicitating the Minister on his assumption of the Office of the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Nepal, the Secretary General expressed his good wishes for success in the important position in the Government. He also briefed the Foreign Minister on the status of ongoing activities of the SAARC process, including four ministerial meetings that have been held in a year and the forthcoming meeting of the Finance Ministers. 

 

The Minister expressed confidence that with his long diplomatic experience, active role being played by the Secretary General would be instrumental in carrying forward the SAARC process. He also assured him of full cooperation of the Government of Nepal in discharging his responsibilities as the Secretary General of SAARC as well as for effective functioning of the SAARC Secretariat. 

The Minister stated that SAARC should be instrumental in economic integration of South Asia through meaningful connectivity and trade among the Member States of SAARC. The Minister also stressed the need for strengthening the SAARC process in order to make it more efficient and capable in dealing with common problems and challenges being faced by South Asian people. He particularly underlined the need for poverty alleviation through concerted efforts under the auspices of SAARC as one fourth of the humanity lives in the region. While expressing Nepal’s commitment to the SAARC process, the Minister underscored the need for early convening of the Nineteenth SAARC Summit.   In this regard, the Minister highlighted the efforts being made by Nepal as the current Chair of SAARC to create conducive environment for early convening of the SAARC Summit and other meetings by consulting other Member States.  

 

The Secretary General commended continued support given by the Government of Nepal to the Secretariat. He also expressed the hope that the Minister as the Chair of the SAARC Council of Ministers would provide continuous help and guidance to the Secretariat for its effective functioning. The Secretary General also underscored the importance of regular holding of the SAARC Summits and other meetings of the SAARC mechanisms in order to create renewed momentum in regional cooperation. He also briefed the Minister on recent reforms introduced at the Secretariat to make it more efficient and responsive to the Member States and for enhancing the visibility of the SAARC process and upgradation of IT infrastructure. 

 

23 April 2018, SAARC Secretariat, Kathmandu.

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H. E. Mr. Amjad Hussain B. Sial, Secretary General of SAARC, inaugurated Video Conferencing facility and digital library at the SAARC Tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS Centre in Bhaktapur, Nepal, today.

 

Addressing the officials present on the occasion, the Secretary General lauded the initiative taken by the Centre in creating the Video Conferencing facility. He expressed the hope that the facility will enable the Centre to carry out its functions more efficiently in a cost-effective manner, particularly through regular contacts with the members of its Governing Board and National Focal Points.

 

The Secretary General also appreciated the launching of the digital library, which he described as the “state-of-the art” facility in today’s world of Information Age. He expressed the hope that the digital library, which is accessible through a password, will be of great use to students and scholars in the pursuit of their learning. Medical Universities/Colleges and research institutions will also be able to benefit from the treasure of knowledge available in the digital library.

 

The Secretary General congratulated Dr. R. P. Bichha, Director of the Centre and his dedicated team on these achievements. He also thanked the Director for his able leadership in guiding the affairs of the Centre since his joining last year.

 

While in STAC, the Secretary General also addressed the participants attending the Workshop on e-Library organized by the Centre. On the occasion, he also distributed Staff of the Year Award-2017 to Mr. Krishna Basnet, Administrative Officer, and certificates of appreciation to three other officials of the Centre on their outstanding performance.

 

Since its establishment in 1994, STAC has been playing an important role in the control of Tuberculosis, particularly through the launch of the SAARC Regional Strategy for Control of TB in 2013.  In recognition of its outstanding performance, the Twenty-seventh Meeting of the Governing Board declared STAC as a Centre of Excellence.  

 

Besides STAC, SAARC has three other Regional Centres, namely, SAARC Agriculture Centre (Dhaka); SAARC Energy Centre (Islamabad); and SAARC Cultural Centre (Colombo). An interim Unit of the SAARC Disaster Management Centre is functional in Gujarat, India. These Centres facilitate collaboration among the Member States of SAARC in specialized fields.

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Kathmandu, 12 April 2018

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