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BIMSTEC Charter Came into Force

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 Context

  • The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) will now be open to new members and observers after a historic first charter of the grouping came into force.

Background

  • The seven members of BIMSTEC first signed the charter in 2022 at the fifth BIMSTEC summit held virtually in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
  • However, it could come into force only after every country ratified the document, which finally happened in April 2024.

 What is BIMSTEC?

  • BIMSTEC is a regional organization that was established in 1997 with the signing of the Bangkok Declaration.
  • Permanent Secretariat: Dhaka, Bangladesh
  • Members: Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Thailand, Myanmar and India.
  • Significance: The BIMSTEC countries are home to 22 percent of the total world population and have a combined gross domestic product (GDP) of about $3.6 trillion.

About Charter

  • The charter establishes a legal and institutional framework for cooperation among the seven countries surrounding the Bay of Bengal.
  • The document also gives the organization a legal personality, establishes a mechanism for admitting new members and observers, and enables negotiations and agreements with countries and other regional and international groupings.

Significant aspects of charter

  • According to the charter, all decisions will be taken by consensus among current members.
  • The charter gives the institution a clear process for the admission of new members, including adding the criteria of geographical contiguity or “primary” dependence on the Bay of Bengal for trade and transport purposes.
  • The charter also highlights that the leaders’ summit will be held every two years and indicates the procedure for the rotational chairmanship of the organization.
  • It also empowers the BIMSTEC ministerial meeting to set up any further criteria as required.

 BIMSTEC and SAARC

  • The idea of BIMSTEC also gained prominence after the 2016 Uri attack when India was able to get SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) nations on its side to boycott the organization’s summit, which was to be held in Pakistan.
  • SAARC and BIMSTEC focus on geographically overlapping regions. But, they are not equal alternatives.
  • SAARC is a purely regional organization, whereas BIMSTEC is inter-regional and connects both South Asia and ASEAN.
  • Unlike SAARC, which is burdened by India-Pakistan hostilities, BIMSTEC is relatively free of sharp bilateral disagreements and promises to provide India with a cooperative sphere of its own.
  • India is often accused by Nepal of deactivating SAARC in favor of BIMSTEC due to the membership of Pakistan in the former organization. 
South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC)

  •  SAARC was established in 1985. – Secretariat: It was set up in Kathmandu, Nepal, in 1987.
  •  It aims to accelerate the process of economic and social development in its member states through increased intra-regional     cooperation.
  • SAARC has eight member countries: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.

 Way Ahead

  • The BIMSTEC Charter is a testament to the shared commitment of the Member States to promote regional cooperation in key sectors such as security, connectivity, trade, agriculture, environment, science and technology, agriculture, and people-to-people contact.
  • It is an important step towards promoting regional cooperation and allowing for agreements to be signed with other countries and regional organizations.