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India hosted the 2nd  BIMSTEC Agriculture Ministers meeting

Highlights

• An MoU between the BIMSTEC Secretariat and the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) has been signed and approval has been given to bring Fisheries and Livestock sub-sectors under the Agricultural Working Group.
• India Referred the importance of millet as a nutritious food and highlighted the efforts made to promote millet and its products during the International Year of Millets – 2023.
• Member countries appreciated India’s efforts to strengthen cooperation in agricultural research and development and for awarding six scholarships each for postgraduate and PhD programmes in agriculture.

BIMSTEC

• Formation : Bangkok declaration under the name BIST-EC (Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, and Thailand Economic Cooperation).
• Nature of organisation: International organisation of seven South Asian and Southeast Asian nations,
• Members : Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Thailand
• Leadership : Rotated in alphabetical order of country names.
• The permanent secretariat: Dhaka, Bangladesh.
• Current Secretary General of the BIMSTEC: Ambassador Tenzin Lekphell from Bhutan
• BIMSTEC Free Trade Area Framework Agreement:
• BIMSTEC Free Trade Area Framework Agreement (BFTAFA) : All member nations to stimulate trade and investment in the parties, and attract outsiders to trade with and invest in the BIMSTEC countries at a higher level
• Other agreements
• BIMSTEC Coastal Shipping Agreement: To facilitate coastal shipping within 20 nautical miles of the coastline in the region to boost trade between the member countries
• The first ever BIMSTEC Conclave of Ports summit was held in Visakhapatnam, India
• Cooperation with Asian Development Bank (ADB): To undertake the “BIMSTEC Transport Infrastructure and Logistic Study”