ECONOMIC COOPERATION IN SAARC: GETTING OUR ACT TOGETHER

This article provides a critical assessment of the state of economic cooperation within the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) and makes an urgent call for the member states to "get their act together." It reviews the limited progress made under the SAARC Preferential Trading Arrangement (SAPTA) and argues that intra-regional trade and investment remain far below their potential. The study identifies the key obstacles to deeper economic integration, which are primarily political rather than economic. These include the persistent climate of mistrust between India and Pakistan, the fear of Indian economic domination by the smaller states, and the prevalence of non-tariff barriers and poor transport connectivity. The research argues that the failure to advance economic cooperation is imposing a huge opportunity cost on the entire region, which remains one of the least integrated in the world. The paper concludes with a strong plea for the political leadership of the SAARC countries to show the will and the vision to overcome the political barriers and to finally unlock the immense potential of the South Asian economy.

Despite nearly two decades of existence, the record of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) in promoting meaningful economic cooperation remained deeply disappointing. This paper offers a frank and critical assessment of this failure and makes an impassioned plea for the region to "get its act together." The analysis begins with a stark statistical presentation of the reality of South Asian economic integration: intra-regional trade accounted for a miniscule percentage of the members' total trade, a figure far lower than that of any other major regional bloc. The core of the article is a diagnosis of the reasons for this persistent failure. It moves beyond the technical economic arguments to focus squarely on the political obstacles. The paper argues that the all-pervasive climate of political mistrust, centered on the India-Pakistan conflict but also present in other bilateral relationships, has consistently poisoned the well of economic cooperation. It analyzes how the fear of economic domination by the region's largest economy, India, has made the smaller states hesitant to embrace genuine free trade. The study also details the practical barriers, such as the long lists of sensitive products excluded from tariff concessions under SAPTA and the appalling state of cross-border infrastructure. The findings lead to an unequivocal conclusion: the problem is not a lack of economic logic for cooperation, but a profound and persistent lack of political will. The paper concludes with a powerful call to action, urging the leaders of South Asia to recognize the immense costs of their continued disunity and to finally make the bold political decisions needed to build a truly integrated and prosperous region.