Members of SAARC

Members of SAARC India Bangaladesh Bhutan Maldives Pakistan Sri Lanka Nepal Afghanistan Its seven founding members are Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Afgharistan joined later on rd April, - - International Economic Organisations . . . Objectives of SAARC According to Article I of the Charter of the SAARC, the objectives of the Association are as follows: i) To promote the welfare of the people of South Asia and improve their quality of life; ii) To accelerate economic growth, social progress and cultural development in the region; iii) To promote and strengthen collective self-reliance among the countries of South Asia; iv) To contribute to mutual trust, understanding and appreciation of one another’s problems; v) To promote active collaboration and mutual assistance in the economic, social, cultural, technical and scientific fields; vi) To strengthen co-operation with other developing countries; vii) To strengthen cooperation among themselves in international forums on matters of common interest; vii) To cooperate with international and regional organisations with similar aims and purposes. . . . Functions of SAARC The main functions of SAARC are as follows. . Maintenance of the co operation in the region . Prevention of common problems associated with the member nations. . Ensuring strong relationship among the member nations. . Removal of the poverty through various packages of programmes. . Prevention of terrorism in the region. . . . Achievements of SAARC . The establishment of SAARC Preferential Trading Agreement (SAPTA) and reduction in tariff and non-tariff barriers on imports. . The setting up of Technical Committees for economic cooperation among SAARC countries relating to agriculture, communications, education, health and population, rural development, science and technology, tourism, etc. . SAARC has established a three-tier mechanism for exchanging information on poverty reduction programmes which is passed on to member countries. . SAARC Agricultural Information Centre (SAIC) in works as a central information institution for agriculture related resources like fisheries, forestry, etc. . South Asian Development Fund (SADF) for development projects, human resource development and infrastructural development projects. With all these tall claims, the inter-SAARC Trade has not gone beyond three percent in the last years. - - International Economic Organisations