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BIMSTEC, or Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation, is a sub-regional group of South Asian and Southeast Asian countries. The group was initially formed on June 6th, 1997, as BIST-EC, which was the abbreviation for Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka & Thailand – Economic Cooperation. Myanmar was included in the group on December 22nd, 1997, and the group was renamed BIMST-EC to abbreviate Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand – Economic Cooperation. Bhutan and Nepal also joined the group in February 2004.
On July 31st, 2004, the group was renamed BIMSTEC or Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation.
Members of the BIMSTEC Summit
As mentioned above, the BIMSTEC Summit consists of 7 member countries representing about 22 percent of the world population. The BIMSTEC member states are
Bangladesh
India
Myanmar
Sri Lanka
Thailand
Nepal
Bhutan.
BIMSTEC is organised in 4 levels which also gives rise to 4 types of events:
The Summit consists of the Government, or the Heads of the member state
The Ministerial Meeting consists of the ministers in charge of foreign relations
The Senior Officials’ Meeting comprises the foreign secretaries, secretaries, and other senior officials nominated by the member states
The BIMSTEC Permanent Working Committee (BPCW) consists of senior officials from each member state representing their focal points.
Objectives of the BIMSTEC Summit
The Bay of Bengal Initiative on Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation was created mainly to promote economic and technological development among the member states in 6 sectors in 1997, namely, trade, energy, and technology, tourism, transport, and fisheries. The present sectors and sub-sectors of the BIMSTEC Summit and the nations leading the efforts in the corresponding sectors are tabulated below:
Sector Name | Sub Sector | Lead Country |
Trade, Investment and Development | – | Bangladesh      |
Environment and Climate Change | – | Bhutan |
Security | Counter-Terrorism and Transnational Crime | India |
Disaster Management and Environmental Management | ||
Energy | ||
Agriculture and Food Security | Agriculture | Myanmar |
Fisheries & Livestock | ||
People-to-People Contact | Culture | Nepal |
Tourism | ||
People-to-People Contact (media, think tanks, etc.) | ||
Science, Technology and Innovation | Technology | Sri Lanka |
Health | ||
Human Resource Development | ||
Connectivity | – | Thailand |
Working Principles of BIMSTEC Summit
The BIMSTEC member states follow a number of working principles for its success. Some of them are as follows:
Equality among sovereign nations
Political independence among member states
Territorial integrity of all the member states
Peaceful co-existence of member states
No interference in the internal affairs of other member states
To be a part of an addition and not as a substitute for cooperation among the member nations
Work towards mutual benefits of all the member states.
BIMSTEC Summits
Fifth BIMSTEC Summit: The fifth BIMSTEC Summit was held on March 30th 2022, in Colombo, Sri Lanka. All the other member states joined the conference via video conferencing. The main goal of this meeting was to sign the BIMSTEC Charter. According to this new charter, the member states are expected to meet every two years. Also, BIMSTEC adopted an emblem and a flag, making it an International entity.
Fourth BIMSTEC Summit: The 4th BIMSTEC Summit took place on August 30th-31st, 2018, in Kathmandu, Nepal. The main goal of this summit was to enhance regional trade and connectivity. The Kathmandu Declaration was also adopted during this summit unanimously.
Third BIMSTEC Summit: The 3rd BIMSTEC Summit was held on March 4th 2014, in Naypyidaw, Myanmar. The main highlight of this summit was the proposal to establish a permanent secretariat in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Other topics of discussion were disaster management, tourism, trade, environment, and transport.
Second BIMSTEC Summit: The 2nd BIMSTEC Summit took place on November 13th 2008, in New Delhi, India. The main focus of this summit was on Trade, Transport, and Tourism. The Summit member states noted all the progress made by the summit until that point. Some of the points noted were the establishment of the BIMSTEC Cultural Industries Observatory and the BIMSTEC Cultural Industries Commission.
First BIMSTEC Summit: The 1st BIMSTEC Summit took place on July 31st 2004, in Bangkok, Thailand. During this meeting, the previously called BIMST-EC (Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand – Economic Cooperation) was renamed BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative on Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation).
Serial No. | Date | Hosting Country | Hosting City |
1 | July 31st, 2004 | Thailand | Bangkok |
2 | November 13th, 2008 | India | New Delhi |
3 | March 4th, 2014 | Myanmar | Naypyidaw |
4 | August 30th – August 31st, 2018 | Nepal | Kathmandu |
5 | March 30th, 2022 | Sri Lanka | Colombo (via video conferencing) |
Conclusion
The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation was formed on June 6th 1997. Since its inception, five summits have been hosted by different summit members. One of the primary BIMSTEC objectives is to promote economic and technological cooperation among the member states which share borders along the coast of the Bay of Bengal.
