Bangladesh to become next BIMSTEC chairman

Yunus's leadership will inject new life into the activities of the seven-nation group, the agency's secretary general says

Bangladesh will take over the chair of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation, or BIMSTEC, a global organisation of seven South Asian and Southeast Asian nations.

The alliance’s Secretary General and Ambassador Indra Mani Pandey disclosed the development after he met Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus at the State Guest House Jamuna in Dhaka on Monday.

The BIMSTEC secretary general believes Yunus's leadership will inject new life into the activities of the seven-nation group.

Bangladesh will take over as chairman after the upcoming summit of the group which was initiated in 1997.

Thailand has been in charge of the group since March 2022. Bangladesh previously served in this role from 1997 to 1999 and from 2005 to 2006.

The BIMSTEC secretariat was established in Dhaka in 2014.

The other member countries of the group are – India, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Nepal, and Bhutan.

The alliance’s top summit was scheduled to be held in Thailand in September. It was later postponed and the authorities have yet to set a new time.

Pandey briefed the interim prime minister about the activities of the BIMSTEC, saying the member nations were trying to transform it into a top active regional forum.

“With your leadership, we will be able to make progress in many sectors," he said, citing the body’s efforts to become a functionally more active organisation.

The secretary general said three ministerial meetings will be held a year from now on and the group has signed agreements in key areas, including maritime transport and energy cooperation.

He said environment and climate change have also emerged as key priority areas of the group. Yunus said the group should focus more on youth, environment, and climate crisis issues.

He highlighted the achievements of the Bangladeshi youths who led a successful revolution in July-August.

“They are the future," he said, adding that Dhaka would hold a festival for the youth shortly.

The chief advisor hoped each of the seven nations would send their youths to join the festival.

Ambassador Pandey praised the ‘Three Zero movement’ launched by the 2006 Nobel Peace laureate in the meeting.

He said women-centric development is also a key priority of the BIMSTEC.

Among the BIMSTEC nations, Nepal alone has more than 700 Three Zero clubs, and at least eight Indian universities have set up social business hubs, Yunus said.