South Asian leaders to talk climate change

Climate change, launching a $300 million development fund for infrastructure and a trade agreement topped the agenda Wednesday as leaders of eight South Asian nations prepared to meet for an annual summit, officials said.

The leaders of the South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation, or SAARC, are expected to sign an environmental convention that envisages the exchange of knowledge and eco-friendly technology relating to climate change, coastal zone management, wildlife conservation and environmental impact assessment studies.

The $300 million fund, which would comprise financial contributions by regional countries, will offer loans and grants to member countries for projects to help reduce poverty.

The agreement on trade, to be signed during the summit of heads of government on Wednesday and Thursday in the secluded Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan, will cover services in areas such as health, hospitality, communications, computers and air transport.

Indian Foreign Minister S.M Krishna said Tuesday, during a meeting of the region's foreign ministers, that South Asian nations must grab the opportunity to enhance trade, open borders and facilitate economic integration as the world emerges out of a period of unprecedented global recession. The foreign ministers met for the preparatory work ahead of the summit.

One-fifth of the world's population - and many of its most impoverished - live in the eight countries of SAARC, a group often considered little more than a talk shop since its founding in 1985. It comprises India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Nepal, Afghanistan, the Maldives and Bangladesh.

It was set up to promote economic cooperation and has since sought to tackle issues like food security and terrorism. But progress in most areas has been slow, mainly because of the rivalry between India and Pakistan.

The prime ministers of both countries are likely to hold talks on the sidelines of the summit in the Bhutanese capital, indicating signs of a possible thaw.

Bhutan chose to focus much of the summit on climate change because South Asia is highly vulnerable to its effects, said Bhutanese Foreign Secretary Daw Penjo.

Bhutan has suffered from the global warming-linked flooding of lakes causedby melting glaciers, causing devastating effects downstream, Penjo said.

India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said he looked forward to discussing regional cooperation and strategies for tackling the effects of global warming in the region.

The tiny Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan, which ended more than a century of royal rule in 2008 with its first parliamentary elections, is hosting the SAARC summit for the first time since the grouping was set up 25 years ago.

Lack of resources and infrastructure prevented the tiny nation from playing host to SAARC leaders until now, said Penjo.

Bhutan has long been a holdout from modernity - a mountainous land where Buddhist kings reigned supreme, only allowing the Internet and television in 1999 and coming up with the idea of Gross National Happiness, an all-encompassing political philosophy that seeks to balance material progress with spiritual well-being.

The South Asian countries adopted a regional anti-terrorism cooperation agreement at the last summit in 2008. It called for stepping up efforts to fight all forms of terrorism, including its financing and associated drug trafficking and illicit arms trade.

Trade among the eight nations reached $688 million in 2009 - within three years of the gradual introduction of a free trade regime in the region, said Sheel Kant Sharma, the SAARC secretary-general.