Mr. Chairman,
Honourable Ministers,
Secretary General SAARC,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is a pleasure for me to join my esteemed counterparts at this Informal meeting of the SAARC Council of Ministers on the sidelines of the 75th Session of the UN General Assembly.
I would like to express my profound appreciation to the Chairperson of the SAARC Council of Ministers, His Excellency Mr. Pradeep Kumar Gyawali, the Foreign Minister of Nepal, for hosting this Informal Session.
I also present my gratitude to the Secretary General of SAARC, His Excellency Esala Weerakoon for updating the Member States on the implementation status of important decisions and progress made so far in the key areas of cooperation under the SAARC umbrella.
Mr. Chairman,
Pakistan, being a founding member of SAARC, has always attached great importance to this platform and remains committed to the principles and objectives of the SAARC Charter.
SAARC upholds the principle of sovereign equality which forms the basis for meaningful regional cooperation. Pakistan will continue to play a proactive role towards the success of this important organization.
Excellencies,
The fact that this session is being convened in a virtual mode is a testament to the impact COVID-19 has created across the globe. Our thoughts are with those who succumbed to the Pandemic and our prayers go out to those who are struggling with the Pathogen.
The economic impact of the pandemic has led to worst economic crisis since the Great Depression of 1930’s which has had a huge impact on economies, societies and nations.
Excellencies,
Pakistan has been successful in containing and controlling the virus by following a comprehensive strategy of “smart lockdowns”, tests, tracing and quarantine.
Our efforts in finding a balance between lives and livelihoods was helpful in mitigating the impact of the pandemic. We have provided state support to the vulnerable segments of the society through the Prime Minister’s USD 8 billion relief package.
The Prime Minister also constituted a volunteer Task Force of one million youth, dedicated to provide support for monitoring and data collection and to assist administration in enforcement of SoPs.
Many of those rendered out of work due to lock downs and slowing demand, are being re-employed in our ambitious 10 billion tree tsunami projects.
Similarly, to strengthen the resilience of our healthcare system, Pakistan Preparedness and Response Plan (PPRP) worth $ 595 million has been launched.
The pandemic has exposed the weaknesses of healthcare systems around the world, particularly in the developing countries. It is a challenge as well as an opportunity at the same time to remodel and develop our medical systems. While taking advantage of this opportunity, Pakistan manufactured its first own ventilator machine.
Although Pakistan may have controlled the Pandemic within its boundaries, we believe that a regional approach is needed to stop the spread of Covid-19 and save lives and livelihoods of the people of South Asia.
For an effective regional approach and regional coordination, Pakistan hosted the SAARC Health Ministers’ Video Conference on 23 April 2020 to develop a regional response to fight the Pandemic. Pakistan also provided an opportunity for all Member States to learn from each other’s successes and experiences.
Mr. Chairman,
Prime Minister Imran Khan has also appealed to the world leaders, leading financial institutions and the UN Secretary General for launching of a ‘Global Initiative for Debt Relief’ to provide much needed relief to the developing countries currently faced with worsening financial meltdown due to the pandemic.
The appeal has been successful and the fiscal space thus made available will be helpful in meeting the urgent needs of developing countries to deal with the challenge.
Excellencies,
Our common challenges including global health pandemic, food insecurity, locust invasion and climate change need a regional approach. For that, SAARC needs to renew its focus on these challenges so that it can be institutionally better prepared to counter these challenges should they arise in future.
Mr. Chairman,
The Pandemic has had the greatest impact on the most vulnerable segments of the society and it has also affected the development agendas of governments.
Whereas it may be instinctual to take an inwards looking approach at the time of crisis, the development needs of the people of South Asia can only be fulfilled by pooling resources and taking a regional approach. In this regard, Pakistan is ready to contribute and play its part.
Mr. Chairman,
I would also like to invite the attention of the esteemed participants to the overall performance of SAARC during the last more than three decades. SAARC embodies the hopes of the peoples of South Asia; however, its impact on the lives of the people has not lived up to our collective expectations despite horizontal growth of the organization and its bodies.
The efforts need to be more focused, result-oriented and in cooperation with more nations and international and regional organizations.
In this regard, Pakistan has always been supportive of the idea of upgrading the Observer status to Dialogue Partners of those Observer Countries that are actively engaged with SAARC Countries and that can play an important role in the development of the region, especially in the context of post-pandemic economic recovery.
Our region, being a huge consumer market offers immense opportunities for regional trade in goods, services and investment. The collective area and population of SAARC region makes us one of the largest regional organizations in the world.
The demographic dividend in South Asia is unique where large segment of our population comprises energetic youth, making us the biggest market of human resource. Abundant natural resources are untapped waiting for our shared commitment for exploration.
Excellencies,
Peaceful resolution of outstanding disputes is a pre-requisite for achieving development, economic growth, poverty alleviation and social uplift of our masses.
In this context, we strongly emphasize the importance of faithfully following the UN Charter and implementing UN Security Council Resolutions.
We must strongly condemn and oppose any unilateral and illegal measures to change the status of disputed territories in violation of UN Security Council Resolutions.
Such unilateral measures run counter to our shared objective of creating a regional environment of amity and cooperation and these must be opposed resolutely.
Excellencies,
It is our duty to ensure the protection of the people’s basic rights and fundamental freedoms. I urge the Council members to take cognizance of systematic human rights violation of the people suffering from long-running disputes and ensure their protection.
Excellencies,
The Member States must also work together to strengthen the organization and its bodies in accordance with the principles and spirit of the SAARC Charter. In this regard, The South Asian University demands special attention where reports of corruption and mismanagement have surfaced in international media.
The SAARC was established to promote regional cooperation among Member States while the Apex and Recognized bodies continued to play a central role in achieving that goal.
Any attempt to de-recognize these bodies is prejudicial to the SAARC objectives. The Bodies, which are part of the civil society in South Asia and play an important role in promoting different dimensions of the ideals of SAARC, must continue to function as per precedent. Any decision on the subject rests solely with the Member States.
Mr. Chairman and Excellencies,
In the spirit of regionalism and as per Pakistan’s commitment to the SAARC platform I would like to reiterate Pakistan’s willingness for hosting the 19th SAARC Summit at Islamabad at the earliest. We hope that the artificial obstacles created in its way would be removed and SAARC would be enabled to function as an effective instrument of regional cooperation.
I thank you all.
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