Full Form of BIMSTEC, Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation

What is BIMSTEC?

A regional multilateral organization, the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC). It is a multi-sectoral alliance of nations located near the Bay of Bengal. It was founded on June 6, 1997, with the signing of the Bangkok Declaration. This group has a total of seven members. The BIMSTEC headquarters are in Dhaka, Bangladesh. 

Five of the seven members are from South Asia: Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, and Sri Lanka.

Myanmar and Thailand are both from Southeast Asia. BIMSTEC connects South and Southeast Asia, the Great Himalayas, and the Bay of Bengal ecologies.

Its main goal is to create an enabling environment for rapid economic development, accelerate social progress, and promote regional collaboration on issues of mutual interest.

History

On June 6, 1997, the Bangkok Declaration signed the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC). With the addition of Myanmar on December 22, 1997, and Bhutan and Nepal in February 2004, the organization known as BIST-EC (Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, and Thailand Economic Cooperation) changed its name to BIMSTEC and now has seven Member States.

On June 6, 1997, representatives from Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, and Thailand signed the "Declaration on the Establishment of the Bangladesh-India-Sri Lanka-Thailand Economic Cooperation (BIST-EC)" in Bangkok. BIMSTEC's institutional development has been gradual. 

As a consequence of a decision made at the Third BIMSTEC Summit in 2014, the BIMSTEC Secretariat was set up in Dhaka, Bangladesh, the same year, providing an organized framework for encouraging and deepening cooperation.

Recent BIMSTEC Developments

The 17th BIMSTEC Ministerial Meeting was held on April 1, 2021, and was virtually chaired by Sri Lanka in the presence of all member states.

Decisions taken are as follows:

• BIMSTEC Transport Connectivity Master Plan
• The BIMSTEC Centre for Weather and Climate, hosted in India, is fully operational and equipped with cutting-edge technology to provide early disaster warnings.
• Other member states praised Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's initiatives, such as the BIMSTEC Startup Conclave in January 2021, the BIMSTEC Disaster Management Exercise in Puri in February 2020, and the Conference on Combating Drug Trafficking for BIMSTEC countries in February 2020.
• The proposal to hold the 5th BIMSTEC Summit in Sri Lanka in the coming months was also warmly received.

Objectives of BIMSTEC

Here are the main objectives:- 

1. To develop and implement targeted cooperation initiatives in previously agreed-upon areas of cooperation and any additional areas that the Member States may decide upon to foster an environment conducive to rapid economic development. Member States may review the cooperation areas regularly.
2. Improve economic and social development in the Bay of Bengal region through collaborative efforts in an equal spirit.
3. Encourage active cooperation and mutual assistance on issues of mutual interest in economics, technology, society, and science.
4. Establish training and research facilities in the academic, expert, and technological fields.
5. Establish training and research facilities in the academic, professional, and technological fields.
6. To collaborate more effectively in projects that support and complement the Member States' national development strategies and improve real living circumstances for the populace, especially by creating jobs and improving transportation and communication infrastructure.
7. Collaboration on projects that can be managed most successfully regionally among BIMSTEC Member States and make the best use of available synergies.
8. To help alleviate poverty in the Bay of Bengal region.
9. To promote investment and trade as key drivers of regional social and economic growth.

Importance of BIMSTEC for India

Allows India to pursue major policy objectives such as:

1. Neighborhood First entails giving priority to the country's immediate periphery; Act East entails connecting India with Southeast Asia; and 
2. The economic development of India's northeastern states entails connecting them to the Bay of Bengal region via Bangladesh and Myanmar.

Allows India to counter China's growing influence in the countries surrounding the Bay of Bengal as a result of the Belt and Road Initiative's expansion.

With the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) becoming dysfunctional due to differences between India and Pakistan, India needs a new platform to engage with its neighbours.

BIMSTEC Institutional Mechanisms

• BIMSTEC Summit - the highest policymaking body in the BIMSTEC process, consisting of heads of state/government from member countries.
• Ministerial Meeting - BIMSTEC's second highest policymaking forum, attended by External/Foreign Ministers from member countries.
• Senior Officials' Meeting - attended by Senior Officials from Member States' Foreign Ministries.
• BIMSTEC Working Group - Held monthly at the BIMSTEC Secretariat in Dhaka and attended by Ambassadors of BIMSTEC Member Countries to Bangladesh or their representatives.

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